Love and Misery
by xHandWhistlerx
Summary: Prince Ludwig has never been one to fall for such unpredictable emotions as love. Upon meeting Aurora, that all changes. This story documents their journey of ups and downs as they face the many trials of relationships and responsibility. Rated T for language, violence, and some alcohol use.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hi everybody! I haven't posted a story in ages! Just so you know, in this story Ludwig is 25 (in the beginning anyway) and Aurora is 24. Sometimes I'll post what song I was listening to while I wrote the chapter to give a better idea of the mood. For example, I used "I've Just Seen a Face" by the Beatles for this chapter. I don't own the Mario characters in this story or any of the songs I post. Okay, that's enough. Enjoy!**

Ludwig watched as Roy rushed down the corridor with a koopa girl in tow, both of them giggling and prodding at one another the whole way to an empty room at the end; they entered it and closed the door behind them. He rolled his bright red eyes, knowing that she, like the many before her, would disappear in a few weeks and be replaced by a new, equally oblivious girl. Meanwhile, Ludwig knew that Bowser was scheming his next kidnapping even though it would end the same way it always did: with a headache and a broken heart.

Ludwig had never been in love before, nor did he plan to be any time soon, if at all. He felt that the concept was unpredictable, and therefore a waste of time. For him, if he was unsure of how something would function, or how to gauge the likelihood of problems, and what those problems would most certainly be, then he found it worthless to try, as it would likely end in failure and frustration. Besides, he wouldn't want some girl traipsing around his study or his room; he had enough problems keeping his siblings out of them. And they were such a distraction anyway: always needing attention and gifts and God knows what else. He had far too much work to do.

Or course he didn't have any work to do at the moment, which was why he was watching Roy and musing about silly things like love. He shook himself out of his boredom and decided to leave the castle for a while to visit a nearby town to see if there were any new books at the library (Bowser's castle had no library, as the king found books to be a "waste of space and money"). He draped a cloak around himself so that he would not be so easily recognized and headed down the long dirt road toward the distant cluster of buildings.

Once in town he quickened his pace, eager to see the library again. He could already smell the must of old pages and the freshly penned words in the newer editions. But then came a sound that was impossible to ignore, one that made his ears prick with interest. The gentle whine of a violin wafted to him from the open windows of an instrument shop across the street. He squinted to see who the player was and his breath caught in his chest: a female dragon koopa, delicate in frame, handled the instrument with as much gentleness as she would a child. He watched as the olive-toned scales of her arms rose with pleasure as she played, a contented smile upon her beautiful muzzle as she moved the bow back and forth. Her turquoise hair fell in ringlets about her shoulders and her eyes, an unbelievably piercing yellow, opened at last as she stopped playing. Looking longingly at the instrument, she set it down carefully and left the shop, a look of regret on her face as she continued down the road.

Ludwig, without thinking, began to follow after her, the library a fading thought in his mind. After a long walk of twists and turns, he followed her into a small alleyway. A few steps in and before he knew it he had an elbow thrust into his side and he was pushed against a wall with a dagger to his throat.

"You'd best tell me why you're following me now." The female said, her once bright eyes now hard as stone.

Ludwig swallowed, trying to think of an answer even though he really didn't have one. "I-I saw you in a shop! You were playing violin—,"

"That doesn't answer my question. I suppose you were planning on raping me, right?"

"I would never do such a thing!" He growled, squirming against her grasp.

To his surprise she snarled at him, but released her hold on him. She kept her dagger ready.

He brushed himself off and glared at her, embarrassed that she had taken him by surprise so easily. "Look, I really am not here to cause you any harm. I just saw you playing and…" he trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

She seemed to loosen up slightly. "You're strange."

"No, I'm just trying to gather my thoughts after being attacked with a dagger!" He shot back, puffs of smoke floating from his nostrils.

"Well if you won't tell me," she stepped forward and pressed a palm to his forehead, "then I'll find out for myself!"

Ludwig tried to push away, but his vision went black and the scene of her playing in the shop filled his mind again, as if someone had just pressed a rewind button in his memories. He re-watched as he followed her all the way to the alley, and then his vision slowly faded back to normal.

"What did you do to me?" He roared, spitting fire at her feet.

She yelped, leaping backwards. "Nothing! I just viewed your thoughts, is all."

Ludwig looked horrified. "You can read minds?"

She smiled at him deviously. "Indeed I can." She then held up her left palm, the one she had pressed to his forehead, and he saw that there was an intricately printed design of an eye tattooed there. "Now I know that you aren't a threat; you were just intrigued by me for whatever reason."

"You couldn't just trust my word?"

"I'm not a particularly trusting person."

He looked at the ground, deciding that he should try his best to explain what she saw. "I just…I wondered why you didn't just take the violin. You seemed to like it so much…"

She sighed, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "I _would_ buy it…but I barely have enough to get a day's worth of food."

He looked at her sympathetically but internally felt rather stupid. Not everyone had the endless riches that he did. "Well, um…since I gave you such a scare…would you like me to buy you something for lunch?"

Her face lit up, but she quickly regained her composure. "No, you probably need the money as much as I do…"

"Trust me, I'll be fine." He said, beckoning her to follow him. "By the way, my name is Ludwig. And yours?"

"Aurora." She replied, and his scales tingled at the sound. He led her out of the alleyway and into the nearest eatery, a sleepy little pub, empty since it was the early afternoon.

Ludwig, who had eaten at the castle, merely ordered a coffee to sip on. He then gestured for Aurora to order; he was amazed when she got their largest cut of steak with a heaping pile of mashed potatoes with gravy, and a corn on the cob.

"Where do you plan on putting all of that?" He asked, amused, as she began attacking her steaming food.

"Into my stomach." She slurred around her food. "I never get to eat like this."

He looked at her questioningly. "What _do_ you eat every day?"

She laughed. "Not steak. By the way, I hope I didn't get too much…" She appeared embarrassed.

He shook his head. "By no means. Eat up."

And she did. Ludwig was impressed that she emptied her plate completely, even using her fingers to wipe it clean.

"Well, ah…thank you, Ludwig." She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "It's not often that someone does something like this for me…especially not after I attack them in an alleyway." They laughed together, but then she became serious. "I really am sorry about that."

"It's fine. I don't know what I was expecting to happen." He replied. They then sat silently for a few moments, not knowing what to do next.

Aurora stood up. "Um, I guess I should be going now."

Ludwig stood as well. "Yes, I should be too." She nodded and began to head for the door. He grabbed her hand. "Will I get to see you again?"

She narrowed her eyes wryly at him. "I like to visit that music shop quite a bit in the afternoons." She then pulled her hand from his and walked from the pub.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: This time I listened to "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" by The Beatles. I listen to them a lot. :) Anyhow, review my stuff and tell me what you think! And, of course, enjoy!**

Ludwig walked home silently, in a daze. He had no idea what had just happened to him: following a strange girl, being attacked by her, and then buying her lunch? And then asking to see her again? It was so very unlike him that a shiver went up his spine.

It was like his consciousness had been shut off and some other invasive force had taken control of him entirely. Never before had he taken any interest in women, and he had seen plenty of them between his sister, the many princesses his father stalked, and the girls his brothers brought home. What made her so different? What made her so special?

Ludwig blinked in surprise when he realized that he was already back at the castle. He hung his cloak wearily next to the door and decided to go to his study; he concluded that work would take his mind away from her and that he would likely forget about those blazing golden eyes. Once there he went straight for the piano (no violin today, as it would remind him of her). He sat down, flipped through his music book, chose a song at random, and began to play. But he knew the song so well that his mind began to drift and he found himself watching Aurora again, stopping at a flower shop to lightly sniff at some bright orange lilies before continuing on her way. Growling, he turned to another song, this one more difficult, and started again. But because of the angry tempo, he found himself being held to the wall again, Aurora pressing a knife to his throat. Yelling angrily he slammed the keys and threw his music across the room, where the papers hissed across the floor and fluttered through the air before settling in a disorganized heap.

"What's your problem?" Came Roy's voice from the doorway, Larry standing behind him and peeking in curiously.

Ludwig put a hand on his forehead, batting the other exasperatedly. "Nothing, nothing's wrong. Just leave me alone."

"You went into town today; did something happen?" Larry asked, pushing around his much larger brother.

"Can't you just drop it?" Ludwig asked, heaving a sigh.

"No; you're making such a huge deal out of it that we have to know now!" Larry replied, stepping closer.

Roy followed, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, bro. What's making you tick?"

Ludwig clenched his jaw, glaring off to the side. But, since he knew they wouldn't let it go, he muttered, "A girl."

"Huh?" Larry and Roy gasped simultaneously, leaning closer.

"I said a girl, dammit!" Ludwig shouted.

Both Roy and Larry looked astonished; they glanced at each other in disbelief.

Ludwig rolled his eyes. "In town. I was going to the library and there she was! Playing violin in some shop on the other side of the street…" He decided to leave out the part about being held hostage by her, "And I ended up getting her lunch…I asked when I could see her again…"

"Oh, dude…" Roy said, hands on his hips. "You're the last person I thought would want a girl…other than, like, Kamek."

"I don't really understand it either." Ludwig said, shaking his head.

Larry cleared his throat. "Are you gonna see her again?"

Ludwig shook his head again, putting his hands up. "I don't even know what I would say…" He then sighed and began to pick up his music.

"Dude!" Roy said. "Just tell her that you're a prince! Bitches love princes!"

"No, they love money and they use you for it; so really you're the bitch." Ludwig replied, not looking up from his cleaning.

"Whoa! Third degree, bro!" Larry laughed while Roy turned red.

"Well, didn't she use you today for a free meal?" Roy snarled. "See, you used it!"

Ludwig did a final straightening of his papers and returned them to their folder. "I never told her I was a prince, though. And it wasn't even that expensive."

"Well then maybe you don't like her as much as you say!" Roy shouted back.

At this Ludwig's eyes glazed over a bit as he replayed Aurora's face while she played the violin, the way her body had moved with the music. "Oh, I'm sure that I do…"

Larry raised an eyebrow. "This is so _weird_. You've never been like this, man."

"I know. Like I said, I'm still trying to figure it out myself." He laughed a bit. "I mean, I must've looked so stupid! As if any girl would want me; I'm hideous!"

"You ain't that bad." Roy said, finally calmed down. "I mean, you've got a little pudge in the middle, but you've got nice muscle tone everywhere else. It's not _me_, but it works." He said, nodding.

"Right." Ludwig muttered.

Larry studied his brother as well. "Maybe if your hair wasn't…_quite_ as messy." At that same moment he whipped out a comb to run through his slick blue mohawk.

Ludwig tried to run his fingers through his hair and nearly lost them in the tangles. "Yeah, good luck to the brush that tries to tame that."

Suddenly Larry and Roy looked deviously at each other and at the same instant said, "Wendy!"

Ludwig's eyes widened. "Oh God. No, no! There is no way I'm letting her touch me!"

"Come on, bro, she's your only hope! I mean, you _do_ want to impress this chick, right?" Larry asked, knowing that he was worming his way into Ludwig's mind.

Ludwig sighed, pursing his lips and screwing his eyes shut. "Fine."

He immediately regretted the decision.


	3. Chapter 3

"So you finally want a makeover, huh?" Wendy cackled, filing away at her pointed red claws.

Ludwig rolled his eyes. "I really would prefer we call it something else. I'm not a woman."

"Yeah, but you're trying to impress one. Let her do her thing." Larry said. There was no way that he or Roy were going to miss out on seeing their oldest brother get one of their sister's infamous makeovers.

Wendy walked in a circle around Ludwig, her heels click-clacking against the stone floor as she scrutinized every inch of him. "Okay," She said when she finished. "We definitely need to do something about that blue disaster on your head, so we'll start there. It's a good thing you brought Roy, 'cause we might need some elbow grease once we hit the big tangles."

"God help me." Ludwig muttered, entering Wendy's room and sitting in the plush chair in front of her mirrored dresser.

With that, the agony began; Wendy yanked and tore at his tangled hair, obliterating the long ignored knots. But it was the scissors that truly set Ludwig on edge.

"Hey, now! What are you planning to do with _those?"_ He croaked.

"I'm wrapping Christmas presents early; what do you think I'm gonna do?" She shot back at him in her usual snarky manner. "Some of these tangles are just too far gone. If not even Roy can rip them out, then they've gotta go bye-bye!" With that she grabbed a fistful of hair and sheared it off.

Ludwig watched in horror as it floated silently to the floor. "Just don't take too much off." He moaned, feeling his hands start to sweat. His mad scientist hair was his trademark look; what would happen to his image if he ended up bald like most of his other siblings?

"Oh, get over it! Larry, turn him around so he can't see." Wendy barked. Larry obliged and spun him around, leaving Ludwig blind to what was going on.

The ripping continued, now accompanied by unsettling snips and growing piles of blue on the floor.

Wendy saw his expression and rolled her eyes melodramatically. "Oh for God's sake. This is your own damn fault, anyway, Luddy. We always told you to brush your hair. Besides, I know what I'm doing. You're gonna look _hot_ once I'm done with you!"

Ludwig groaned and shut his eyes, watering from the pain of the constant yanking at his scalp. Soon it was over and Wendy had Roy push the wheeled chair to the sink on the other side of the room, where she began to run warm water.

"Since when do you run a fully functioning salon?" Ludwig inquired.

"Hey, I might be a princess, but who says I can't be a beautician princess?" Wendy cackled. She sprayed down her brother's head and began to massage it with her fingers full of shampoo.

Ludwig sighed with relief as she washed his hair; it relieved the tension from the violent pulling.

"See? Feels good, doesn't it?" He heard her say as she began to rinse it out.

Afterwards there was a final comb through, this one much less painful than the first, and then Wendy dried his hair, styled it a bit with some gel, and stood back to admire her work.

"This…this is my best work." She said, satisfied with herself.

"Yeah, he looks alright." Roy said, nodding with approval.

"It would be great if someone turned me around now." Ludwig growled impatiently.

Larry jumped up from the chair he had been in and spun his brother around. "Look at the new you!"

Ludwig was expecting to see himself almost bald or with some horrid, patchy haircut as some sort of prank, but was pleasantly surprised by what greeted him in the mirror. His hair, although it was a bit shorter than it had been before, was still choppy and messy but with a more stylized look. It made him seem a bit older, as though more people would take him seriously…even handsome.

"Well?" Wendy asked.

Ludwig ran his hands through it a few times, something he wasn't able to do before, and found it to be soft and smooth. "I'm impressed, Wendy. Not bad at all."

Wendy hoorayed with triumph and Larry laughed. "See? It's not as horrible as you made it out to be!"

He shook his head. "Do you think I could impress her now? Do I need to do anything else?"

Roy squinted his eyes behind his dark sunglasses. "For now you should be okay. Maybe start working out more."

Wendy was also looking him over again. "You could clean up your scales a bit and file your claws so they're not chipped and jagged. Do that yourself, though; I'm exhausted!"

Ludwig went back to his room and tried filing his claws like Wendy had said. He found it annoying, but once they were finished he thought they looked better. He had Kamek run a hot bath and he scrubbed away at his deep tan scales. Once he was finished his overall appearance had a more polished shine, giving him a sense of completion. Anxious to see if all the work would pay off, he went to his room and fell asleep with conversational possibilities playing out in his head.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: I can't wait to see the reviews for this one. Hope you guys like it!**

Ludwig walked into town again, more nervous than he had ever been before. He never thought that a woman would have this sort of effect on him; it was strange and almost a bit unsettling how quickly she had consumed his mind. He was already writing a song about her. To be played on violin, of course.

His heart pounded when he spotted her, Aurora, standing in front of the instrument shop where he had first seen her. Looking at his reflection in the glass display window of one of the other shops, he fidgeted with his newly styled hair and straightened his fine indigo cloak. Assuming what he hoped to be a confident posture, he strode toward her, calling her name as he approached.

"Aurora!" He boomed, causing her to leap around in fright. When she noticed him she sighed and relaxed.

"Oh, it's you." She said, placing a hand on her chest.

"I didn't mean to scare you." Ludwig replied, quaking from the failure of his pompous greeting.

She looked up at him, the afternoon light making her yellow-ocher eyes sparkle. "That's fine. Normally when someone shouts at me it means I'm in trouble. You're lucky that I didn't go into a dead-on sprint." She laughed awkwardly.

He offered a laugh. "I suppose so."

There then followed a pit of silence so wide that Ludwig almost considered running away himself.

Clearing his throat, he finally pointed at the window. "So, you like to play instruments?"

She sat on a bench and beckoned for him to take a seat next to her. "Yes. I've only been able to sort of master violin, though. The others I just fool around with. I…don't actually have any of my own."

"No? Well it's quite impressive that you've been able to learn the complexity of music only by frequenting a shop." He said.

Aurora squinted her eyes at him, a crooked smile on her muzzle. "Where do you get that fancy talk from? Are you rich? Well, evidently, you bought me that meal the other day. Oh!" She exclaimed, reaching into her satchel and pulling out a small package. "I brought this for you. Homemade. Or should I say…" She waited while he unwrapped the papers to reveal a transparent flask of golden liquid, "Home-mead!"

He raised an eyebrow at her pun as she giggled to herself. "You make mead?"

"It's a family thing." She replied. "My uncle works at a brewery and my mother bartends at the shop where the stuff gets sold. So, every so often, we get free booze!" She exclaimed, giving a sarcastically passionate thumbs-up.

"What about your father? Does he work there too?" Ludwig asked with a laugh, smiling.

Her eyes flitted to the ground, her hands falling and folding across her lap. "No…We, um…don't really know where he is…"

Unsure of what to say next, Ludwig stayed silent, hoping that he hadn't caused any discomfort for her. He flipped through his memories to find a solid response to the situation, recalling how in movies the consoling person often laid a hand softly on the upset person's, apologizing sincerely as they did so. He decided to try and placed a hand on top of hers tentatively. "I…I'm sorry about that. Thank you very much for the gift; it looks delicious."

Aurora's gaze lifted and their eyes met. Her lips curved into a delicate smile. "Want to take a walk with me? I know a nice trail through the forest where we can relax a little."

Ludwig nodded, intoxicated by the way she spoke to him and elated that his strategy had been a success. A dopey grin spread across his face unbeknownst to him, causing her to giggle again as she stood and beckoned for him to follow her. Together they weaved in and out of other koopas in the streets and sidewalks, continuing their conversations as they went. Aurora was quite funny, often telling bad puns or mimicking other people around her.

"Okay here's one: A guy walks into a music shop and starts busting up all the instruments until the shop keeper finally kicks him out. He turns to the other people in the shop and says 'I knew he was _treble_ when he walked in.'" She said, snorting at the hilarity of her own pun while Ludwig shook his head in amusement.

"Well, how about this: a photon is walking through the airport when a concierge asks him if he needs help with anything. The photon says 'no thanks, I'm travelling light.'" Ludwig laughed until he noticed her blank expression. "Oh! A photon is a light particle that has no mass. So 'travelling light' has multiple meanings. It's a physics joke."

She stared blankly ahead for a moment before a stroke of inspiration lit up her face and she understood; she burst out laughing, despite the delay. Ludwig gave a thumbs-up of approval.

Finally they stood among the trees, Aurora leading him to an underused trail as shadows slipped over her body. The gentle breeze wafted through the ringlets of her hair, dragging them lazily around her shoulders. Ludwig trailed slightly behind while she traipsed among the rustling trunks and leaves, amazed at how well their second encounter (could he call it a date?) was going. He had never been able to make a woman laugh before, and a woman had never appealed to him more than Aurora did. A few times she would look over her shoulder at him and smile enchantingly, coaxing him onward though he didn't need convincing. He smiled at the thought of seeing her a third time, a fourth, a tenth.

"See that hill? There's a fantastic shade tree where I like to unwind at the top." She said, pointing forward, her voice breaking his thoughts.

Following her finger, he nodded. "Certainly. Wherever you want to go."

She grinned. "Race you!" Laughing, she rushed ahead. Although he had never been one to put forth effort toward exercise, this chase was one Ludwig couldn't resist. He closed in on her and she yelped in mock terror, picking up speed. They reached the top, each gasping for air.

She pushed him lightly. "I win."

He put a hand on the trunk of the tree for support. "It was a tie!"

"No way." She taunted, flopping into the long grass. He sat down beside her, leaning against the tree with his arms behind his head. They were quiet for a while, listening to the wind as they caught their breath. He would occasionally glance down at her as she watched the leaves scatter the sunlight above them. Each time it seemed he would find something else to become enamored with: the delicate, yet strong curve of her muzzle, her slender arms, the way her silky turquoise hair spread out all around her in the grass.

She sat up, peering into the distance. "Look how well you can see the castle from here." She commented, pointing out over the trees and tiny rooftops to the hulking structure, formidable even from miles away.

Reminded of his secret identity, Ludwig nodded. "It still looks so large even from here."

She nodded as well, then looked over at him. "Do you live near it?"

He had no plan for this kind of question and, becoming nervous, he shrugged lamely.

"Oh, come on. I know that you're some sort of nobility at this point. With the way you talk and this get-up," She flipped the edge of his cloak up in her hand, "You have to have some kind of money."

"I suppose so. Yes, I'm well-off." He settled on a vague but affirmative response. "But I don't think it matters all that much…"

"Sure it does!" She exclaimed. "You have it better than pretty much everybody else in this kingdom. You seem pretty down-to-earth, though, not snobby like a lot of other rich-o's."

He smiled, happy that she liked the side of his personality he had shown her. "Well, I'm glad that you're having an enjoyable time with me."

To his surprise she leaned over him, planting one arm on the other side of his body, her eyes locked on his. "I really am, Ludwig." The feeling of her lithe form so close to his, of her eyes gazing at him so intently, put Ludwig in such a daze that he could think of nothing else but her touch.

"Do you want to try the mead?" Aurora said, the arm on the opposite side of his body retrieving her gift from the pocket of his cloak as she sat back in her previous position. "I want to see what you think when you try it!"

He smiled at her, his mind still fogged over. "Oh, sure. I'd love to." She uncorked the bottle skillfully with a claw and handed it to him. "Are you sure you don't want any?"

"No, I get the stuff all the time. Besides, it's yours!" She said, urging him to drink it.

"Alright." He said, putting the cool glass of the bottle to his lips. The drink washed easily down his throat, but with the appropriate amount of acid at the end. "Mm! It's quite good!" He said, nodding with approval.

Aurora grinned back, her eyes narrowing to golden slits. "Good. I'm glad."

"Yes, it has a unique flavor that I like. I'll have to…tell…" Ludwig found himself struggling to form words as his tongue and lips went numb. A shock of concern bolted through his body, but it was quickly subdued by a heaviness that overtook his limbs. Soon his entire form was weighted down, his eyes struggling to stay open.

Aurora once again leaned over him. "Don't worry, sweet pea, it won't last too long. You'll fall asleep and then poof! You'll wake back up a few hours later like nothing ever happened." As she rifled through his pockets Ludwig managed to emit a low growl. "Oh, hush up, rich boy. It's not like you'll be hurting for money like the rest of us." Finally, she produced the small satchel of coins and finer gems that he had brought along with him. "Gee, you really are well-off. I hit the jackpot today!"

As she popped up to a stand cheerfully Ludwig tiredly reached out and batted her tail weakly with his hand before it crashed back to the ground. Turning one last time to him, she crouched down and delicately kissed his cheek.

"Stop struggling and just sleep now." She whispered softly into his ear. When at last she had strode triumphantly out of sight, Ludwig was consumed by the irresistible call to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

The whining grate of violin and sad voices escaped through the cracks beneath the doors of Ludwig's bedroom, reaching the listening ears of Larry, Roy, and Wendy.

"He's been in there for weeks." Larry commented, his arms crossed.

"Crazy." Roy sighed, shaking his head.

"Yeah, he even took my Patsy Cline record." Wendy added. Her brothers winced.

"Wow. It really is bad. He never listens to folk country." Larry said.

Roy pondered the heavy wood in front of him, raising a muscular leg in front of him. "I'mma bust down the door."

"NO!" Larry and Wendy yelped simultaneously. Larry approached the door and grasped the handle; it turned in his hand. "It's unlocked, you dipshit."

"Oh." Roy muttered, lowering his stance. All three cracked open the door, peeking inside. The room was sparsely lit by pale rays of sunlight sneaking in between the heavy curtains, drawn shut. The smooth voice of Patsy Cline crackled from the record player, singing sad songs about love. On the bed, amidst crumpled sheets and strewn pillows, laid Ludwig, staring at the ceiling.

The three exchanged glances before Larry cleared his throat. "Hey there, Ludwig. What's up?" He asked, straining to be cheerful.

There was a solid minute of silence, aside from Patsy's voice.

"Nothing." Ludwig finally replied, his voice husky.

"That's…that's lame. You should come to town with us!" Larry suggested, signaling for the others to nod and smile along with him.

"…No…" Ludwig moaned, grasping a blanket in his hand and turning over in bed, dragging it over top of him.

Roy stepped forward. "Come on, bro!" He came up beside Ludwig on the bed. "If you don't come out I'll put you in a headlock and noogie you to death."

"And then I'll proceed to murder you." Came Ludwig's muffled reply from beneath the covers.

Taking the threat lightly, Roy waited a moment before throwing himself on top of the heap that was his older brother. He got in a few punches before Ludwig threw back an elbow, catching him in the jaw.

"Ow—," Roy started to protest before Ludwig emerged from his blanket cocoon and grabbed onto his shoulders, hurling him off of the bed.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS THE MATTER WITH YOU?" Ludwig roared at his brother, who now sat clutching his jaw in disorientation on the ground.

"We could ask you the same thing!" Larry yelled back. "Quit being such a whiny asshole!"

"Only when you all quit being obnoxious idiots!" Ludwig retorted.

Wendy decided to step in, planting her hands on her hips. "For Christ's sake, Ludwig, just get over it already! You saw this girl _twice_. It's not like you were engaged!"

At this Ludwig laughed. "I know _that_! But you don't have the full story, either! Do you want to know _just_ what happened the last time I saw her?" He implored, a wild look burning in his eyes.

"Yeah…" Roy grunted, standing up and backing away from the bed.

"Oh good! Gather 'round, children, it's story time!" Ludwig hissed, standing on the bed. "There once lived a prince who thought such feelings as love and adoration were mere folly, never to be felt within himself. Until one day he went into town and had the misfortune of laying eyes upon the fairest maiden in the land. He followed the maiden and they spoke for a while until at last they had to part. But never fear, she said, they would have a chance to meet again. His heart twittered as it never had before.

"So the prince frolicked home and enlisted the help of his siblings to make himself a more handsome suitor for the maiden. He prepared himself in appearance and wit in the days before they were to meet. And so the day came when he strode into town and happened upon the fair maiden once again, who this time bestowed upon him a gift." He leaned over and snatched up the partially drunken bottle of golden mead from the windowsill. "Together they sought a path through the forest and came upon a hearty tree at the crest of a sun-drenched hill. The prince's heart was filled with the utmost tenderness for the maiden, and he believed that hers beat in much the same way.

"But then," His features darkened ominously and he swirled the bottle around in his hand, "The maiden wished for the prince to sample her gift. Like the love-struck fool he was he put the bottle to his lips. A heavy sleep bound him to the grass as the maiden's poison coursed through his body. Before the prince was overtaken he watched as his fair maiden's true hideous form revealed itself and she made off with his riches, the only thing she held love for in her cold, dead heart.

"And so, the prince made his way slowly homeward, his own heart, sickened but wiser, vowing to never love again." He finished, his eyes turned to the floor. "The end."

All of his siblings' jaws had dropped. "Dude, she took your money?" Larry exclaimed.

"I thought you said you weren't using the prince move!" Roy said accusatorily.

"I never said anything about who I was. She figured it out on her own. Not that I was a prince, but that I had money." Ludwig replied, falling to a sitting position on the edge of the bed, his arms crossed.

Wendy shook her head. "Wow. How shitty."

They were quiet, letting the new details set in.

Ludwig sighed. "I apologize for getting myself into such a rut. I guess…well, I'd never had feelings like that before and she really _did_ seem to like me at first. What happened was just so unexpected and it…hurt me."

Larry gave his brother a sad half-smile. "I've never had that happen, but, yeah, stuff like that sucks."

"Still," Wendy chimed in, sitting next to her brother on the bed and putting a hand on his back. "You can't let this completely destroy you and keep you from finding the _one._ Just try to put it behind you and it might even be a funny story someday."

Ludwig nodded slowly. "I suppose you're right. I formed a hypothesis, did an experiment, and my results were wrong. The only thing left is to try again."

"Yeah. Sure." Roy said.

"Hey, we were serious about going into town. Do you want to come or just kind of…chill?" Larry asked.

Ludwig pondered for a moment, then gave a crooked smile. "Yes…I'll come along. I think I should clean myself up first, though."

"Good idea. You kind of smell." Wendy replied, patting his shoulder as she stood up. "Besides, I'm not _nearly_ done with my make-up. I wanna meet some people tonight, too!"

Roy groaned. "Girls." Then they exited the room while Ludwig stood and opened his curtains, letting the light pour in.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: I hope you all are liking the story so far! I'm heading back to college soon, but I'll try to keep regularly posting the chapters. Enjoy!**

Roy and Larry talked excitedly about the girls they were sure to meet while Wendy took up the lead, eager to get to the club. A few shouts from behind signaled Iggy, running with Lemmy on his shoulders, and Morton puffing behind, his massive gut bouncing as he tried to keep up.

"You didn't think you were going to ShellShock without us, did you?" Iggy asked with a cackling laugh as they finally caught up. "Oh hey! Ludwig's alive!" He commented.

"Yeah dude I haven't seen you in a zillion years!" Lemmy chirped, batting at his eldest brother's hair.

Ludwig rolled his eyes, but smiled. "I highly doubt that's an accurate frame of time."

"Hey, cool it on the nerd speak. You ain't getting no chicks like that!" Roy scolded.

"Even I know that." Iggy whispered behind his hand to Ludwig, who sighed.

Finally the group of princes, and princess, approached ShellShock: multi-colored lights flashed around inside and heavy bass thudded out through the opened door at the front of the club. Although the line stretched several feet down the sidewalk, Roy strutted up to the bouncer and appeared to flash a card of some sort. The guard's eyes widened for a moment over his dark sunglasses and he motioned for everyone to go inside, much to the waiting crowd's dislike.

Ludwig's ears rattled with the bass and he squinted as he was bombarded by the light show. His siblings all seemed elated to be there, save Morton, who shuffled to the nearest booth to order food. Lemmy hopped up and started dancing on Iggy's shoulders, while Iggy pumped his skinny fist in the air. Wendy had somehow already found someone to dance with and Roy, amazingly, was surrounded by women who apparently knew him from past adventures. Larry ran his switchblade comb through his mohawk, smoothing it back, before sidling up beside a koopa lady at the bar. Meanwhile Ludwig was left standing by himself, unsure of what to do; he didn't often accompany his siblings on their outings. He decided to go to the bar and order a drink.

As he sat on his stool, the song "Dancing Queen" came on and he somehow heard Wendy's voice shriek over the monstrous noise that this "was her jam". He received his drink and stared inquisitively at its luminous blue color before taking a small sip. Pleasantly surprised, he downed it and ordered another. Around his fourth he felt satisfyingly buzzed.

"Hey!" Larry yelled as he came over to Ludwig's seat, himself a bit drunk. "Wanna…wanna do karaoke?"

"No. Karaoke is the worst." Ludwig replied, giggling slightly.

"But DUDE." Larry hiccupped. "They've got instruments so you can totally be a band!"

Ludwig pondered for a moment and, on a whim, decided to join in. He found that Morton would be on drums with Larry and Lemmy attempting other instruments like bass and keyboard. Ludwig would be lead guitar.

"What song are we doing? For God's sake, don't say Wonderwall." He asked, tuning his guitar despite the fogginess of his senses.

"Lonely Boy!" Lemmy shouted eagerly.

"Get some Black Keys up in this bitch!" Larry jibed.

Before he knew it, Ludwig's fingers were strumming out the notes and his voice was belting out the lyrics as best he could; he was thankful that he actually knew the song they had chosen. Noticing how many girls were watching and cheering him on from beneath the stage, he even spun around on his heel, eliciting whistles and applause. Perhaps rock and roll wasn't so bad.

Morton ended up being exceptionally good at the drums while Larry and Lemmy slipped up a few times. Ludwig took it all in stride and ended out the song by spinning the guitar around his body and strumming the final note as loudly as he could. The cheers he received were like nothing he had ever experienced before and he left the stage with his heart pumping excitedly in his chest. He felt sweat dripping from his forehead, though, and decided to go outside for a moment to cool off.

Leaving the rumble of the music and the crowd for a minute proved refreshing as Ludwig stood on the patio alone, looking at the stars. Sighing contentedly, he decided that for the first time in a while he felt truly happy and that, for once, he was having fun.

His ears abruptly pricked backward, hearing the sound of a glass shattering. Looking behind him, he noticed a dim space between the club and the next building. Picking up more noises he walked forward curiously, figuring it was just a stray chain-chomp. He poked his head around the wall and saw two figures struggling a ways down the alley, one far smaller than the other. Suddenly the larger one, a male, slammed the smaller one, likely female, into the wall.

"You think you can get away scot-free after what you did? You're damn wrong if you do!" The male koopa growled.

The female's voice hissed out something inaudible as she squirmed against the wall. Her head turned to the side, directly into a spot of light.

Ludwig's heart leaped to his throat as his eyes settled on the ruffled turquoise locks, the slender muzzle, and the eyes, surely the luminous gold, screwed shut. All of his thoughts froze in place, his hearing just a buzz, as he watched the other koopa throw Aurora onto a pile of crates, his body moving over top of hers as she bent forward, still trying to move.

Ludwig found himself mid-lunge, his claws spread out to grab the grizzled koopa. Together they slammed into the ground, freeing Aurora. He landed a punch to the koopa's muzzle before his rival's elbow flew back and nailed him above the eyebrow. He fell back, his vision blurring worse than it had from the alcohol. The rival was now on top of him, delivering a disoriented punch to Ludwig's collarbone. Growling, Ludwig managed to force his feet up to the rival's chest and, with a shout of effort, kicked him off. Without warning the alleyway lit up with bright orange flames. Ludwig rolled out of the way, watching in dazed amazement as Aurora spat fire onto the other koopa, who yelled in pain as he got his footing, took off down the alley, and vanished into the darkness.

Catching his breath for a moment, Ludwig slowly pushed himself up to a stand, his head throbbing. His vision slowly moved over to find Aurora, who was grasping the crates for support as a few traces of smoke left her mouth with each breath. She found him as well and they locked eyes.

"L-Ludwig?" She asked, her head moving back and forth in astonishment.

He spat off to the side, the taste of iron in his mouth. "Aurora."

There was silence between them as she stood, rigid and tense, a few feet away from him.

With a sigh he broke it. "I see that your thieving ways have gotten you into some trouble this time around."

She relaxed considerably, straightening up and letting go of her grip on the crates. "You could say that."

He came forward a few steps. "Are you hurt?"

"I have a few scrapes but I'll be fine."

"You…your lip is cut…" He replied, beginning to reach out but then awkwardly retracting his arm. He winced in pain.

She lowered her fingers from her lip. "You got it a lot worse than I did."

He shrugged, wincing again. "I think he bruised my collarbone. It won't take too long to heal."

Aurora held her hands hesitantly in front of her, trying to form a question. "I…why…why did you help me? I used you to get money…"

Ludwig held up a hand to stop her. "Would you have rather me stood by and watched?"

She fell silent for a moment. "I really owe you a lot now."

He smiled weakly. "Well, just to be sure that you're alright, would you come to the castle with me for proper medical assistance?"

She blinked in confusion. "Castle?"

He froze. "Oh. Right." He cursed his alcohol-hazed mind. "I suppose I should tell you that I live in King Bowser's castle. Because…I'm his…eldest son."

Her eyes widened. "Y-You're a…_prince_?"

He put a hand on the back of his neck. "Well…yeah." He said nonchalantly.

"Christ…" She breathed. "I stole from the royal freaking family."

"Let's not talk about it anymore."

"Good idea."

Ludwig then led Aurora from the scorch-marked alley, commenting that he had never encountered a female who could breathe fire before, to which she shrugged. The wind picked up as they left the town behind and came closer to the looming castle with each step. Shivering, she clutched his arm, leaning into him; despite himself he smiled.

Once they entered the gates, Ludwig chose the most discreet route through the castle to get to his room. This was an easy enough task since most of the castle's inhabitants were asleep at the late hour. He opened his door slowly to ensure that it wouldn't creak and motioned for her to slip inside, after which he shut and locked it behind him.

Aurora stood in the lamplight and let her eyes roam around the large, well-furnished room. "Wow. You have a nice place here."

Ludwig shrugged, secretly thankful that he had cleaned the place up before leaving. "I can't complain. The view is sort of pretty at night." He gestured to the window, where the lights of the town dotted the distance.

She nodded in agreement before turning to him. "Um…I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to freak out, but your forehead's been gushing blood for a while…"

He brought his hand up to the knot above his eyebrow, his fingers coming away both damp and crusty from the blood that had already dried. "Well, head wounds always look far worse than they actually are; you could get a paper cut up there and it would bleed like hell." He went into the bathroom off of his room and looked himself over in the mirror. The cut above his eyebrow was sizeable and had swelled, making his eye look angry. He washed off the excess blood, of which there was plenty, and walked back out to the bedroom. Aurora sat on the far end of the window seat, her head against the glass.

He walked over and sat on the cushion next to her, holding up a vial of green jelly. "This is medicine made from green mushrooms. Just dab a little on your cuts, cover them with bandages, and they'll be nearly healed in the morning."

She looked at the vial in awe. "I've only ever _heard_ about this stuff. My family can't afford medicine this good." She took it and poured a drop onto her finger, spreading it lightly over the cut on her lower lip. A considerable amount was left there when she had finished and, after hesitating for a moment, she reached up and began rubbing it into the cut on his forehead. His body went rigid at her touch and he averted his eyes while she applied the medicine gently.

"There. Did I do it right?" She asked when she had finished.

He nodded. "Perfectly."

Their eyes met for a moment, tired but content. The lights of town flickered in the darkness, the moon a smiling crescent above them all.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: For this chapter I listened to Song on the Beach; Photograph by Arcade Fire. Really pretty stuff. :) Hope you like this new chapter!**

Ludwig woke up to the sun glaring through his window, picking up the sound of birds chirping through the glass. He had fallen asleep with his head against the window and, when he lifted his head, his neck cracked sorely. With a groan he vowed to never sleep there again. He stood, stretching his arms above his head with a yawn before stopping abruptly upon seeing a lump beneath the sheets of his bed. He soon remembered that he had let Aurora sleep there the night before.

As quietly as he could he walked over to the side of the bed, where her sleeping form lay curled up on her side. Her turquoise hair fell partially over her face, twitching slightly as her slow breaths moved in and out. In her dreaming state she appeared completely at ease, as though she hadn't slept in years.

He pondered waking her up for a moment, but decided to clean himself up in the bathroom instead. He showered, the hot water helping to ease the soreness from the night before. He took care to wash out the scratches on his chest as well, having forgotten to tend to them last night. Next he brushed his teeth and hair and, yawning again, he shuffled back out to the bedroom. There he found Aurora sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes.

"I didn't wake you up, did I?" He asked.

She jerked into high alert, her eyes darting around and taking in her surroundings until she finally remembered where she was. "No, no I woke up by myself. Thanks for letting me use your bed by the way…"

"You're welcome."

A pause.

He pointed over his shoulder to the bathroom. "Did…did you want to wash up?"

She thought for a moment, then nodded. "Sure. That sounds nice."

"Then afterwards we could get breakfast. Or lunch. I don't know what time it is."

She laughed. "Sounds good." She walked into the bathroom, giving a gasp as she commented on how spacious and fancy it was. He chuckled as he listened to her excited and curious oo's and ah's through the wall.

"There should be an extra toothbrush in the cabinet beneath the sink, just so you know!" He called to her when the water stopped running. A few moments later she emerged, glowing with refreshment and delight.

"The water was so warm! It was, like, _hot!"_ She exclaimed, running her fingers through her damp hair. "And the towels were so soft! I felt like I was in a spa!"

He smiled. "Good. Are you hungry?"

"Starving!" She said. "By the way, your head looks better; the swelling's gone and now there's just a little cut left. And look," She pulled out her lip. "My cut is completely better!"

"Great! That's what the stuff's supposed to do." He replied.

Together they left his room and walked through the corridors of the castle, the stone ceilings soaring high above their heads. Aurora looked at everything in amazement and Ludwig explained what some of the architecture and rooms were for while she listened intently. He led her to the kitchen, where breakfast was still hot, and they grabbed platefuls of eggs, bacon, and toast. Deciding to avoid the main dining hall, he took her to a side room with a table for two overlooking the courtyard. As they ate, she praised the quality of the food, calling the bacon a religious experience, and causing him to laugh in agreement. Ludwig watched the way the sun lit up her golden eyes as she watched the piranha plants snap at butterflies in the garden, a smile spreading on his face. Suddenly an idea dawned on him.

"Hey! I have something I want to show you that I know you'll like." He said.

She raised an eyebrow. "Alright. Take me there, your majesty!" She teased as he rolled his eyes. They left the table as he strode eagerly through the stony halls, Aurora trying to keep up. Finally he reached a set of double doors, placing his hands on both of the golden doorknobs.

"Ready? I can't wait to see your face." He said.

"Well, open the doors then!" She replied, getting excited.

So, turning the handles, he pushed open the doors to reveal his music study. The ceiling high windows at the back of the room let the sunlight shine in and reflect off of the gleaming black and white tiles. His grand piano sat majestically in the center of the room, while his other instruments floated in a slow circle in the air above their heads.

Turning to her, Ludwig saw that Aurora had her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide as saucers. Silently she stepped into the room, walking slowly as her head turned in all directions to take it in. She approached the piano and stroked the dark wood gently with the tips of her fingers. Watching her wonderment at the beauty of music reminded Ludwig why he had fallen for her so quickly the first time he saw her in town. Her tenderness toward the instruments was like nothing he had seen in a person aside from himself before.

He came up beside her as she watched the other instruments turn above her head. "I cast a spell on them that only I can break. It keeps them out of reach from my siblings; I can't tell you how many pieces they've ruined over the years. It was my only choice." He shuddered.

She tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "Well, it looks beautiful."

He looked over to her, debating if he should make a comment about beauty secretly directed at her. Instead he asked, "Would you like to play one?"

She clapped her hands rapidly in joy before clearing her throat and clasping them in front of her. "Yes please."

Ludwig directed his crimson gaze to the instruments, concentrating his energy onto them. They stopped rotating and with a snap of his fingers the redwood violin glided down into his grasp. He passed her the instrument and its bow, smiling at her nervousness as she took them in her hands. She rested the bottom of the violin under her chin, finding the proper placement for her fingers on the neck, and brought up the bow.

"Wait, wait." He said just before she began to play. "Um…" He stood slightly behind her and placed his hand softly beneath her elbow. "The proper position is with your arm raised just…a tiny bit higher." Pressing his hand against her lightly he brought her arm up to the correct height. "That's better. Now straighten your posture a tad…Good."

She shot him a look. "Can I play now, maestro?"

He held his hands up in submission, backing away. "I just want my instrument to be properly handled."

She snorted, giving him a once over. "Yeah, I'm sure you do."

His face burned red. "Just play the damn violin before I change my mind." He growled.

And so she began, the notes of her laughter harmonizing with the whine of the strings. Her eyes were bright as they focused intently on the violin, a smile spreading across her lips. Regaining his pride, Ludwig mustered a grin as he watched her. Picking up on the patterns of the melody he sat down at the piano and began to play along with her. She raised her eyebrows at him but rolled her eyes and continued to play. For a while she led the song's direction, adding in abrupt changes in tempo in an attempt to trip him up. However, he soon forced the song in his own direction and played faster and more difficult combinations of notes, smirking deviously as she frantically tried to stay with him.

Finally she lowered the instrument, panting slightly. "Geez, fine, you win! Even though it's not fair…"

"Oh, how is it not fair?" He inquired, shutting the lid over the keys.

"Well, I'm self-taught! You probably got lessons from the day you were born 'cause you're rich!" She shot back.

"Wrong!" He jibed. "Although I have been playing and mastering instruments from as long ago as I can remember, I learned them all on my own. The prodigy who stands before you gleaned all of his knowledge from years of relentless practice." He said smugly, placing one hand on his puffed-out chest.

She glared at him. "Pompous turd." She muttered, leaning the violin and bow against the piano.

"Oh no, don't give me that! You're just mad because you lost!" He said, beginning to laugh.

"No!"

"Oh, come on, you don't think I know a sore loser when I see one? I have six younger siblings for God's sake!"

"Shut up."

"Sore loser."

"Shut _up!"_

"Sooooorrrrrre loser!"

"STOP!"

"Lllllllllloooooooooserrrrrrrrr!"

Aurora then snatched up the bow and held it in both of her hands. "I'll snap it in half."

At this he leaned back and crossed his arms. "Really? After I saved you last night, gave you a place to stay, and decided to put the fact that you're a criminal behind me? Are you _really_ sure you want to do that?"

Her entire face twitched with raging frustration as the clutched the bow in front of her. Finally, closing her eyes, she sucked in a breath and put the bow back. Her hands were balled into fists at her sides as she threw him a scathing glare, a few tendrils of smoke rising from her nostrils.

Shaking his head with a smile, Ludwig lowered his arms and sighed. "Hey. You beat me up the hill the other day. Now we're even."

Aurora's entire form went slack and her eyes fell to the floor in shame. She let a stream of air hiss out from her nose and bit her lower lip, which had begun to twitch noticeably. His mood finally sobering, he stepped toward her and put a hand on her arm.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you, I just took the joke too far." He apologized softly.

She shook her head, her voice higher from suppressing her tears. "No, it's not that. You…you're just so forgiving after I was completely horrible to you. I…I was only doing…"

He realized what had struck her and shut his eyes for a moment. "Look, I say we just put all of that behind us. Even though it was wrong, I'm sure you were just doing what you had to. So…I say we start over."

Aurora looked up at him finally, her eyes misty, and threw her arms around him. Caught in her embrace, his heart began to pound as hard as it had when he had first met her. Slowly he let his arms encircle her and he put his cheek on top of her silky hair, breathing in her scent.

"Yeah, the door's open. Maybe he's—WHOA!" Came Larry's exclamation from the doorway. Roy and Wendy poked their heads around the door soon after.

Startled, Ludwig immediately broke off the embrace and stepped away from Aurora, who turned to face the others much more calmly.

Larry gave a sly smile, crossing his arms. "I see what's goin' on. Who's your lady-friend, Luddy-Buddy?"

Ludwig sent a fiery glare at his brother, but Aurora beat him to introductions. "I assume you all are part of the royal family that I have the honor of visiting. My name is Aurora." She said courteously with a smile.

The other three completely froze, their jaws hanging open.

Clearing his throat, Larry pointed over his shoulder to the hallway. "Uh, Ludwig? Can we talk for a hot second? Great!" He answered himself as he grabbed his brother's arm and hauled him back out into the corridor with Roy in tow.

"Are you serious right now?" Ludwig hissed, jerking his arm out of Larry's grasp.

"Are _you_ serious?" Larry spat back. "Either you coincidentally happened across another woman named Aurora or this is the same chick from before. You know, the one who stole your money and made you miserable for _weeks?"_

"Did you fuck her?" Roy added bluntly.

Ludwig's mouth dropped open and snapped shut again as the two dissimilar questions jostled about in his head. Shaking his head, he puffed out a breath. "Okay, _yes_, this is the same girl from before. And, no, I did not have…intercourse…with her."

"Hell no you didn't if you can't even say the word." Roy scoffed. Ludwig scowled at him.

"That's not even the point!" Larry shouted in a whisper.

"Honestly, this isn't any of your business. If you simply have to know, I'll explain later. When I'm _not_ trying to have a telling moment in my relationship with a woman." Ludwig replied scathingly as he turned to re-enter the room.

Larry grabbed his shoulder. "Hey, I don't need to know. I just want you to remember what happened last time and really think about whether or not you can trust her."

For a moment Ludwig turned his head back slightly, pondering his younger brother's advice. All three of them moved back into the music room soon after, stopping when they saw Aurora sitting on the piano bench with Wendy standing behind her, braiding her hair. Larry and Roy made snide comments, to which Wendy threw back her usual sass, and Aurora caught Ludwig's eye, smiling with a good-natured shrug. He grinned back from where he stood at the door, not paying attention to what happened around him. His mood had darkened and behind his smile now hid the festering sore of doubt.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Hello, hello! Later on in the story I imagine these two listening to "Land of 1000 Dances" by Wilson Pickett and other songs that are just as fun. Hope you like it and remember to tell me what you think of it so far!**

Ludwig watched as Aurora traipsed about the courtyard, careful not to get too close to the piranha plants. He sat on a stone bench, his mind straining to figure out how to feel toward her. He cursed Larry for planting the doubt in his head, but at the same time wondered if he would someday thank him for it. In his heart he wanted to trust Aurora, but his brain told him otherwise. If there was anything he was certain of, it was that trying something risky multiple times would always end in failure, as evidenced by his father's pointless kidnapping attempts. He wondered if this is where Bowser got his "try, try again" attitude in the face of the most blatant adversity; love, it seemed, was a powerful stimulant.

"Hey, daydream believer," Aurora's voice broke his deep-set thinking, "You still there?"

"Hm? Yes, what is it?" He asked, turning to her on the bench.

She put her arm on the back of the bench and laid her head on it, never breaking eye contact. "What are you thinking about?"

He shrugged, attempting to lie. "Oh, nothing. Just contented musings, I suppose."

Her eyes narrowed. "You frown and furrow your eyebrows when you're content?"

His eyes flickered away from her gaze.

She grinned crookedly. "I know when people are lying to me. Just tell me what's the matter. Something your brother said?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now. It's not sorted out in my mind yet."

There was a pause before, suddenly, she was standing over him and pressing her left palm to his forehead. He tried to resist, but she quickly broke through and started flipping through his thoughts like folders in a filing cabinet. He watched Aurora crouching over him on the hilltop, snatching his money with a laugh before whisking away and leaving him behind. Then he saw himself sitting on the edge of his bed in the dark, a heavy sadness hanging over him as he eyed the bottle of mead on his bedside table. Still in his bedroom, he now sat on the window seat, watching Aurora's sleeping form in his bed, a tired smile on his face. Finally came Larry's words of advice again: "just remember what happened last time".

The world flooded dizzyingly back, leaving Ludwig disoriented as he readjusted to the light. He saw Aurora standing with her back to him, her arms crossed.

"You don't trust me." She said tonelessly.

He stood as well, running a hand through his hair. "Did you expect me to after what you did? I can't help having those thoughts in the back of my head, no matter how much I want to push them away."

She whipped around. "I thought you said that we would put that behind us and start over."

"I _did_ say that and I _do_ want to start over. But what Larry said is true too and I can't deny it. I don't want to end up like my father, chasing after something that will just blow up in my face every time."

"You saved my life in that alleyway, Ludwig, do you really think I'm so shitty a person that I would steal from you _again?"_ She asked accusatorily, growing angrier.

"I've only known you for a total of four days, so why _would_ I know any differently?" He shot back, trying to keep his temper in check.

"Well, the feelings you have for me tell a different story." She said coolly.

"Damn it, why would you do that? You can't just split open my mind and read it like a book!" He shouted, clenching his fists.

"But I can and, um, I _did."_ She rebutted jauntily.

His scales bristled and there was a snarl in his voice as he spoke. "Well then it should be all the easier for you to understand, unless you're too dense to process a four page storybook." Wanting to have the last word, he turned on his heel and stormed away.

"Hey! HEY! Don't you fucking walk away from me!" Aurora shouted as she pursued him.

"I'll walk wherever I damn well please, it's my castle!" He growled back without stopping.

"Fine, be a spoiled brat! What I say doesn't matter in the face of your magnificent douchebaggedry!"

At this he spun back around and jabbed a finger in her direction. "You had best watch your thieving mouth! Your fate lies in my hands and if you don't tread lightly I'll have you thrown in the dungeon where you belong!" And with that he finally stalked away without looking back; he heard no more from behind him.

Out in the sparse fields in front of the castle, Ludwig paced back and forth. He had scorched the wall with his fire when he first rounded the corner and now spare tendrils of smoke puffed from his nostrils. However, the more he walked the more he thought. The more he thought, the more he realized the horrible things he had said. He stopped in his tracks, the chill wind buffeting his hair as it blew by. Like a child he had let his anger overtake his logic and it had probably destroyed any hope of making a friendship with her that he had left. He hung his head and looked back toward the castle, wondering where Aurora was, if she was even still there. All he could picture were her big golden eyes, wincing with the sting of his words and misty with tears that he put there.

Now he paced for a different reason. A thousand apologies whizzed by in his mind as he tried to create one just for her. While part of him wanted to rush inside and find her right away, he knew that he had to let time pass and completely calm himself down (and that she needed to calm down too). There were a few lapses in his thoughts when memories of his wretched words reared their heads. His stomach flip-flopped inside of him with shame and he pushed them away before they could replay themselves again. Finally, when the sun began to dip further down in the sky, he decided it was time to find her.

After an adrenaline-laced search of the few areas he had taken her in the castle he found her in his music room, her face turned up to the instruments while the fading light of dusk trickled in the windows.

Ludwig opened and shut his mouth several times as he thought of saying something but decided against it. Finally he lightly cleared his throat, causing her to turn to him.

He brought his hand out from behind his back, producing a small bouquet of flowers. "I brought these for you because I'm extremely sorry for being a terrible person."

A tiny smile formed beneath her tear-wetted eyes. "No chocolates?"

He shook his head. "Another example of how terrible I am. I can't even make a proper apology."

Aurora let out a weak laugh and turned her gaze to the floor.

"But, truly, Aurora, I am so, so sorry for what I said to you. The more I thought about it the worse it sounded…I felt like I turned into my father or something." He shuddered. "Anyway, I hope you accept the feeble apology I'm offering you and that we can move past this."

She nodded. "I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have invaded your mind like that just because I wanted to. I was only doing it as a joke at first, but then I went too far. You had every right to get mad about that."

After a semi-uncomfortable silence, Ludwig spoke again. "About…not trusting you. The thought never crossed my mind until Larry brought it up and even then I just wanted to snuff it out. I'm completely willing to put my faith in you based on…recent events."

Aurora seemed to perk up a bit. "Thank you. On the other hand, I understand why you were cautious about it. I…I really hurt you and that's not okay."

"I also don't think you belong in the dungeon or that you're dense." He added.

She giggled. "What kind of insult is _dense?_ It's like you're comparing me to cornbread or something."

"Sorry I couldn't come up with something on the level of 'magnificent douchebaggedry'." He replied, a few laughs escaping as he reiterated the phrase.

So, despite the fiery explosion of their fight, they were soon consumed with laughter. They mimicked each other's angry expressions as they made their way back to Ludwig's room. On the way he grabbed a random assortment of snacks from the kitchen along with a few bottles of wine. Back in his room he pulled out several records and started to play them. He uncorked one of the bottles with his teeth and took a swig straight from it.

"Wow, no fancy crystal glasses or anything?" Aurora asked in amazement as she laid on her stomach on his bed, her feet kicking in the air behind her.

He rolled his eyes. "For the rest of the night we're going to play the game 'I don't give a shit'." He then uncorked a second bottle and handed it to her.

The records sang away as their bottles emptied. Ludwig loosened up and tried to dance around to the music, but Aurora, who stood on his bed, laughed and tried to 'show him how it's done'.

"Oh, oh you think you know better than me? I can mashed potatah, do alligatah!" He jumped onto the bed and started tossing his arms around in chopping motions.

"You're a friggin' robot! You just gotta let it flllooooowwww!" She slurred, moving fluidly back and forth.

"But in 'I don't give a shit' you just do whatever because you don't give a shit. You feel me?" He hiccupped, taking another gulp of his wine. He fell off of the bed when he was hit in the face by a pillow. Sitting up he noted Aurora (one of the three) trotting triumphantly around his mattress with the fluffy abomination above her head.

Crawling back up, Ludwig also grabbed a pillow and whacked his opponent down, letting out a victory screech as he stood over her. Reaching into a bag of chips on the floor, she crumbled a handful in her hand and threw it at him, yelling "sneak attack" as she tried to knock him over.

Once their pillow fight was over, he grabbed a bag of marshmallows and told her that they were going to play chubby bunnies. They had each shoved ten marshmallows into their mouths before they resorted to simply throwing them at each other. Their wine bottles were empty. The record player clicked quietly as it turned around and around with no music left to play.

Ludwig woke up near the edge of his bed, his head smashed against his arm, which hung off into space. The light that reached his eyes caused his head to pound and he groaned in discomfort. As he regained consciousness, he felt a warmth on his side and realized that Aurora's legs were draped over his back, perpendicular to him. He pushed them off and turned over to find her, now in a V-shape, next to him amongst the disheveled sheets, feathers, crumbs, and wine-stains. He attempted to sit up but grew light-headed and fell backwards, now leaning against Aurora's back.

She let out a long, weak groan as she woke up and tried to figure out her surroundings. Her arm came back and she accidentally slapped him in the face, to which he let out a surprised yell and scrambled away.

"Oh GOD." She moaned as she sat up and leaned against the headboard.

Ludwig flopped back down on his back, massaging his temples. "That's why we don't play 'I don't give a shit' very often."

They laid around quietly for a few minutes before Aurora shook her head and laughed. "What a crazy day, yesterday."

"That it was. It was like nice time, fight, nice time, fight, apologize, booze." He replied.

"Is that how every time we hang out is gonna go? 'Cause I'll get worn out _real_ quick."

They laughed for a moment until Ludwig abruptly shot up to a sitting position. "Oh, shit, I meant to take you home yesterday."

She giggled. "Whoops."

"Won't your family be concerned?" He asked incredulously.

She shrugged. "They know that sometimes in my…line of work that I get into trouble or have to lay low for a few days. I'm sure my mother might be a little worried, but they should be fine."

"Hm. Well, I'm sure the last place they expect you to be is in King Bowser's castle."

"Right? But, hey, do you have any fancy headache medicine? My head feels like it has a pick-axe shoved through it." She groaned.

"A very accurate description. Yes, I'll get us some." He then stood and went to his medicine cabinet, returning with four tablets and a glass of water. "I can swallow them dry, but—," He was cut off when she snatched her allotted two and gulped them down dry. "Alrighty then."

As they waited for the medicine to begin its work, Ludwig sat next to her on his bed. "You know, I almost couldn't believe how quickly we apologized to each other yesterday. In my experience with women, they almost always give the silent treatment rather than face the problem."

She laughed. _"In your experience with women?"_

"Yes, believe it or not, I _have_ had other encounters with the opposite sex!"

"Sure, sure."

He was silent for a moment before crossing his arms. "Well, maybe not _directly_, but I've observed what happens when my brothers bring women home." He muttered.

She smiled. "I understand. I was just always taught that if you get caught doing something that you know is wrong, then you own up to it and admit your crime. It makes it easier to move on with life; eliminates a lot of stress."

He nodded. "That seems like a good philosophy to live by."

"Well, it's worked out so far." She replied, reaching over and patting his hand. His heart beat faster, but he smiled and shut his eyes. However, he knew that their time together was fading and that he would soon have to return her to her family. A light, sad sigh escaped him as he tried to imagine life without Aurora smiling beside him.


	9. Chapter 9

After a quiet lunch together at the same table they had eaten breakfast at the day before, Ludwig somberly realized that it was time to take Aurora home.

He sighed. "Well, I suppose I should escort you back to town."

Aurora gave him a sad smile. "I've had a lot of fun…well, okay, there were some bumps in the road, but for the most part it was enjoyable." She laughed. "And, hey, it's not like you'll never see me again. You know where to find me."

He managed a grin. "You're right. You won't be far away. I really shouldn't be upset."

Suddenly Kamek's cackling voice sounded throughout the castle. "Would all the princes, and princess, report to the King's throne room, please! His Ultimate Evilness requests your presence immediately!"

Once the final echoes of Kamek's voice faded from the corridors, Aurora chuckled. _"His Ultimate Evilness?"_

Ludwig rolled his eyes. "Whatever makes him feel good. If you want, you could wait in my room for me. I don't imagine this will take terribly long." She nodded gave him a salute as he exited the room.

He found a few of his siblings already standing in front of the stairs to the throne, Bowser perched above them with a devious grin on his gnarled muzzle. Ludwig felt a twinge of concern; he knew that look all too well. Even so, he took his place in line and attempted to swallow the lump rising in his throat.

Bowser clapped his giant claws together once all of his children were gathered beneath him. "My koopalings! Prepare to witness the most extraordinarily evil, the most wickedly wretched battle plan of all! Now that the glorious Doomship has been fully repaired and refurbished with the latest weapons, the time is upon us to at last take the Mushroom Kingdom for our own!" He paused for effect, receiving lukewarm cheers and claps from his disgruntled children. "Our fortresses are stronger than ever before and this time my scheme is foolproof! Behold the newest designs of our battlements!"

Ludwig had stopped listening completely. He knew that this plan, yet another doomed to fail, would tear him away from Dark Land and, therefore, from Aurora. He would be placed impossibly far away from her, as Bowser always gave him charge of the Sky Worlds high above the clouds. It was as if fate was purposely making a relationship with Aurora as difficult as possible.

"And Ludwig!" Bowser's voice rang in his ears.

"Yes, Father?" He muttered.

"You'll be high in the clouds, as usual! You always seem to hold off the Mario Brothers best from there!"

Ludwig shifted his gaze from the floor up to his father, whose once brilliant red mohawk now sported stripes of gray. "Are you certain that this is a sound idea?"

Bowser's face went slack with astonishment. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying…" He hesitated, knowing full well the rage he would face upon contradicting his father. "I'm saying that no matter how much time and effort you put into these antics they always end in failure. So, why bother? I mean, don't you think that you're getting too old to be putting such strain on yourself anyway?"

Bowser's burning crimson eyes locked with Ludwig's matching set and he stared his son down, waiting for him to falter; he pulled back slightly when he didn't look away.

"You may be first in line, but that doesn't mean you can order me around. Your opinion doesn't matter here." Bowser said lowly.

"Perhaps it should. That way we wouldn't have to waste time running in circles." Ludwig rebuffed. His siblings were deathly quiet, their feet shuffling awkwardly as the tension in the room grew more suffocating.

Bowser heaved himself from his throne, stomping deliberately down the steps. While the others quickly backed away, Ludwig stood his ground, though his balled fists were trembling.

The massive king soon stood inches from his eldest son, glowering down at him condescendingly. "Are you insulting me, boy?"

Ludwig took a breath. "No. Only your strategies. I just cannot understand—,"

"So you _are_ insulting me!" He roared, coming forward again. This time Ludwig began to back away. "What makes you so high and mighty that you can talk back to your own father, the KING of Dark Land?"

"I'm only trying—,"

"SHUT UP!" Bowser snarled, swinging a massive clawed hand at Ludwig; he struck him, causing him to topple into a nearby pillar. "I _will_ be victorious in my plans. I_ will_ take the Mushroom Kingdom for myself.I _will_ successfully capture the princess." He grabbed Ludwig's muzzle in his hand, forcing him to make eye contact. "And you _will_ do as I say." He tossed his son to the side and faced the others. "All of you get out! Be ready to set out in the morning!" As everyone scattered he turned and stormed back to his throne.

Once he made it to the corridor, Ludwig let himself fall against the wall and slide to the floor. He stayed there motionless for several minutes as the adrenaline slowly left his system, his pounding heart slowing back to normal. He reached a hand up to his cheek, which throbbed hotly, and his fingers came away bloody. Sighing, he pushed himself back to a stand, knowing that he had to get Aurora.

Standing in the entrance to his bedroom, he watched as she sat in the window, looking out toward town. She turned to him, smiling, but her face quickly fell upon noticing his wounds.

"God, what happened to you?" She gasped, hopping up and rushing over to him.

"Father and I had a minor disagreement." He grunted.

"Have you _seen_ yourself? I wouldn't call whatever happened _minor."_

He walked into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. There were three scratches on his cheek, two of which had broken the skin. The uppermost stretched from the corner of his left eye to the center of his cheek. He cleaned them out silently and put what was left of his green mushroom jelly onto the two deepest cuts.

Aurora watched from the door. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Just peachy." He replied. "There wasn't enough medicine to make them fully heal so I'll have some cool-looking scars left over."

"You don't seem like the type to get scars." She joked lightly.

His heart sank as he turned back to her. "Listen, the king is…rather upset with me at the moment, so I should take you home now, before anything else happens."

A small frown formed on her muzzle. "I understand. Let's go."

For a while they were silent as they walked along the road to town, the wind rustling their hair. Once they were a few minutes outside of the cluster of houses and shops Aurora turned to him.

"I can walk myself home once we reach town. But, hey, do you know when we can get together again?" She asked.

Ludwig sighed and stopped in his tracks. "I…I'm not sure…"

She raised her eyebrows at him, imploring him to explain.

"The meeting we were called to…it was about another attempt to take over the Mushroom Kingdom. That means that we'll all be assigned fortresses in the different Worlds to guard. I've been placed in charge of the Sky Worlds."

"That's awful! How long will you be gone?" She asked, astounded.

"I wish I knew. A few months at the least, up to a year at the most."

Aurora was quiet, staring at the ground with her arms crossed. After a moment she said, "W-will you get hurt?"

He shrugged. "Probably. These plans never turn out the way they're meant to."

To his surprise she came forward and threw her arms around his neck, embracing him tightly. His hands trembled slightly as he placed his arms around her slender form. She buried her face in his chest and he placed his chin softly atop her silky hair. This time they were not interrupted.

She looked up at him when at last she pulled away. "Well, just promise not to get hurt too badly, you hear? The next time I see you I want you to be in one piece."

He smiled without joy. "I promise."

Without another word she turned and walked quickly back into town, weaving stiffly in and out of other people crowding the sidewalks until finally she was lost to his eyes. She never looked back. Sighing, he nearly turned back up the road, but a thought struck him. Now with a sense of purpose, he headed into town toward the music shop. He pushed open the door, a small bell chiming at his entrance, and began to search the shelves. Soon he found it, the lightly colored violin that he had seen Aurora so affectionately playing. Feeling relieved that it was still there, he approached the shop owner and told him that he was ready to purchase. He had a bow tied around the neck with a tag addressed to Aurora fluttering from the ribbon. He walked home with his gift, smiling slightly at the thought of presenting it to her when at last he came back home and saw her face, bright with happiness.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: For this I listened to "P.S. I Love You" by the Beatles. Also, sorry I haven't posted a chapter in a while; school's been keeping me busy! I hope you all enjoy this next chapter and remember to give me your thoughts!**

May

_Dearest Aurora,_

_I've just been dropped in the Sky Worlds from the Doomship. I'm still getting acclimated to the altitude so I'm trying not to exert myself too much; even walking too far or too fast makes me light-headed. So, while I'm essentially getting nothing done, I thought I should write you a letter. I hope you've been staying safe with your family since the last time I saw you. And I hope that they are well._

_I don't have much else to say other than good day!_

_Best Wishes,_

_Ludwig_

June

_Dearest Aurora,_

_Refurbished my ass! One day after I sent you that last letter I had to start fixing this place up. There are cracks in the walls, dust all over the mouse-chewed furniture, and extensive problems with the plumbing. The latter I discovered when I went to take a shower and a fountain cascaded out of the toilet! Not to mention the electrical issues I've been dealing with. I'm writing you this letter by candlelight; how quaint._

_But enough about my problems. How have you been? The first day of summer will be upon us soon. Hooray for long, hot days! Not that it matters all that much to me, as I spend most of my time inside. Up here it's generally cold all the time. And windy._

_If you aren't busy, I'd really enjoy hearing from you. It's terribly lonely up here._

_Warmest Regards,_

_Ludwig_

July

_Dearest Aurora,_

_I was hoping that this whole affair would be over with quickly, but I sense that that's not the case. The brothers have only recently gotten past the Mushroom Plains and now they're paying Prince Roy a visit in the desert. Even so, it's hard to fathom that I've already been up here for two months. I managed to fix up most of the major problems I told you about. Still, there must be some cracks in the caulking because I keep hearing the wind whistle in as I walk the halls of this place. It makes it rather cold in here sometimes so whenever I find one I cover it up immediately._

_Other than those minor details I don't have much else to say. If you want something fun to do, two days from now is Real World America's Independence Day. You celebrate by eating assorted meats, getting drunk, and shooting off fireworks. It's like "I Don't Give a Shit" with explosions!_

_I look forward to hearing from you,_

_Ludwig_

August

_Dearest Aurora,_

_The days are dragging by. I have some old instruments to play up here, but even I can't do that all day. My hair is getting longer than usual; I'd cut it, but I don't want to look like I just escaped the loony bin. I've been thinking of growing a beard. Do you think I'd look okay with a beard? I don't know, the stubble is very itchy._

_As you can see, nothing has happened. It might sound odd, but I think about you quite a bit up here. Even though it would be near impossible, I wish you could come visit me somehow. You could always write a letter back. It would make my day to hear from you, even if you don't have much to say. I hope you like hearing from me._

_Warmest Regards,_

_Ludwig_

September

_Aurora,_

_We're heading into Autumn! So many pretty colors! Oh wait, everything's gray because I'm in the fucking clouds._

_Ta Ta,_

_Ludwig_

October

_Dearest Aurora,_

_Excuse my last letter. Even though it was short it was anything but sweet. Rather volatile, actually. I was a bit drunk and you were on my mind again, so I decided to write my monthly update. Not a good idea. But, perhaps it gave you a good laugh._

_Halloween comes at the end of this month! Hopefully those pesky plumbers will hurry up and get here so that I won't have to miss out. Did I tell you that Halloween is my favorite holiday? I love getting to scare people and dress up without people questioning why. I could literally steal candy from a baby and no one would care. Maybe if I'm back in time we could ding-dong-ditch people and wear a couple's costume. Not that I think we're dating or anything, but just to do it as friends. I think it would be fun._

_Let me know if you think it's a good idea! Send me a letter about it. And tell me how you've been doing. I'd really like to hear from you._

_Always in my thoughts,_

_Ludwig_

November

_Dearest Aurora,_

_Well, I missed Halloween. But with the way things are looking, I should be home by Christmas. Or New Years. I'd better not miss the entire holiday season. Then I would be REALLY angry._

_You might not recognize me when I get back. My hair has gotten almost as long as yours and I've actually lost a bit of weight. There isn't much to eat here. I stopped shaving, too, so there's kind of a patchy beard thing on my face. I'll shave before I see you because I don't like it. And even though I promised you I wouldn't get hurt, expect to see me with some scrapes and bruises. I never get out of these things completely untouched._

_I have a question: Are you upset at me for some reason? The whole time I've been up here you haven't sent me any letters. I realize that you have a busy life with work and such, but even a little note telling me how your day went would really lift my spirits. Can you not afford postage? I'll enclose a bit of money for you; Lord knows I'm not using it._

_Hopefully I'll be home soon. But until then, I hope you and your family stay happy and healthy._

_Until Then,_

_Ludwig_

December

_Dearest Aurora,_

_They're very close now, so I'll be home soon. Are you okay? You aren't hurt are you? Please send me something back so that I know you're okay. I'm driving myself into a state of paranoia thinking about you. You're all I think about anymore._

_Yours,_

_Ludwig_


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Oh boy, things get shaken up a little bit in this chapter. Hope you all like it and tell me what you think!**

Ludwig's eyes peeled slowly open. The world was sideways, dust motes floating in the dim light filtering through the cracked stone walls. The ground beneath him was rough and cold, slowly bringing him back to his senses. He inhaled deeply, then let the air seep slowly back out his nostrils. He had fallen to the basement of his fortress.

He placed a palm flat to the floor, attempting to push himself up at least to a sitting position. He groaned with pain as his bones creaked, his muscles sorely torn and bruised. Discovering a wall nearby, he let himself fall against it, catching his breath and trying to recollect how long he had been unconscious.

As always, the Mario Brothers had managed to fight their way up to the Sky Worlds and in a week they had reached his castle. Ludwig had fought, although without mustering up his usual vigor, and the duo had evidently made quick work of him, sending him tumbling down and down. Seven months of his life, crumpled up and thrown over his shoulder, wasted.

The only thing left was to make his way back home to restart the game.

Ludwig slid gingerly down from the warp pipe, finding himself at the back entrance to his father's castle. He tried his best to accurately perceive where things were in front of him; his left eye was blackened and swollen shut. There were new cracks in the stony walls and debris was scattered about, although much of it had been cleared away. He heard the voices of his siblings up the corridor and found the source to be the throne room.

His siblings had been talking rapidly to one another, but once he entered the room everyone fell into an ominous silence. There was a strangeness to their expressions, the way their eyes were all set on him, that made his stomach turn.

"What is it? Where is Father?" Ludwig asked hoarsely.

No one spoke, merely looking from one to the other, trying to figure out who would speak first.

Larry decided to step forward, limping toward his brother. "Ludwig…we have some bad news—Christ, I don't know how to do this…" He trailed off, turning back to his equally battered siblings for assistance; they merely shrugged. "Dad is in his room right now…he's not awake. Kamek thinks that he's probably in a coma. His injuries were really bad this time and he's probably too old to recover…," He paused, swallowing, and made full eye contact with his brother. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

It took a moment for Ludwig to respond, as he had forgotten how to breathe. "I…yes."

Larry nodded. "Why don't you sit down?"

He felt himself floating along with tunnel vision to the staircase leading up to the throne. His face tilted slowly upward until his eyes landed on the half-destroyed, empty throne. Instead of sitting he continued upward, hearing the muffled sounds of his siblings' voices behind him. At the top, he reached out a clammy, trembling hand to the armrest of the throne and brushed it with his fingertips. All his life he had been first in line and understood, at least somewhat, what that entailed; that one day he would wear the crown. However, he had never been staring coronation in the face so closely. It had always been an event that felt so unfeasible, something that would happen when he was middle aged with graying hair. For the first time in his life he felt trapped, smothered by his heritage.

Ludwig turned around, gazing down at his brothers and sister, envisioning the future when he would not only be their brother but their _king._ He cleared his throat. "Father is…in his room?"

They all nodded in unison, pointing the way despite his definite knowledge of where to go. He walked back down the steps, whisking past them and out the double-doors. He reached the massive entrance to the king's quarters without knowing how he got there.

Kamek spun around in surprise when he entered. "Prince Ludwig! I'm glad that you're home, but…well, I assume you know what's happened?" He said, looking over his shoulder at Bowser's bed.

Ludwig did not respond, following the old wizard's gaze. He ambled forward stiffly and looked upon his father's battered form, breathing shallowly beneath the thick blankets. His arms were both out of the covers, wrapped in casts, and his legs, hidden by the sheets, appeared twisted beyond repair. Most of his muzzle was wrapped in brown-stained gauze, his tightly shut eyes horrible shades of yellow and purple as they swelled with bruises; he was practically unrecognizable. Ludwig reached up and felt the ridges of his scars beneath his fingers, a reminder of the horrible conversation that could serve as their last. The past seven months of bitter thoughts toward his father made Ludwig's stomach turn with guilt.

"It seems that there will be a new king very soon." Kamek's croaking voice said from behind him. The wizard's wrinkled claw patted the prince on his shoulder in a feeble gesture of comfort.

Ludwig shook his head, his eyes locked on Bowser. "I'm not ready."

"You'll have to be. Nothing can change your place in line."

"Unless I die…somehow."

"You would put that burden and sorrow on your siblings? Don't they have enough already? I know you can be cruel, but you can't possibly be that selfish." Kamek scolded.

There was a pause. "What are the chances of him making enough of a recovery to continue holding the crown?"

Kamek replied without hesitation. "No chance at all. I don't even know if he'll be able to wake up and…say goodbye."

Ludwig screwed his eyes shut, gritting his teeth against the pain. After a moment he asked, "Do you think he knows that we're here?"

Kamek shook his head. "He hasn't responded to anyone's presence or voices. Even so, I have heard that patients in a state of comatose know when their loved ones are nearby; they appear to dream about them." He let out a humorless laugh. "It's times like this when I wish I could read minds."

Ludwig nodded in agreement and hung his head. "Let me know if his condition changes. I need some time to think." He turned and left the room, shutting the doors quietly behind him. His mind filled with worry as he walked the halls, but at the same time felt too tired and sluggish to process anything. Finally he came to his own bedroom and swung open the doors. Dust cascaded in the dim evening light, the pale blue rays falling across the room to the shining violin leaning against his bed. Despite the deep state of melancholy he was trapped in, Aurora's image still managed to overtake his senses, if only for a moment. He decided that, even though he was slightly upset that she hadn't contacted him in seven months, he would go into town the next day to see her.

He examined his reflection in the mirror: his face was covered with tufts of coarse blue hair, and the mess on his head tumbled wildly over his shoulders; his left eye was still swollen nearly shut and he had several hideous bruises on his arms and torso; his elbows were scraped raw, throbbing and red.

Deciding that it would occupy his mind, at least for a little while, he ran a bath and washed himself up. He took a razor to his face and sent the patchy fuzz down the drain. He cleaned out his open wounds.

"You needed me?" Wendy asked, leaning against the doorframe.

He smiled weakly at her. "Yes. Would you mind cutting my hair again? It would keep both of our minds occupied for a little bit."

There were dark circles around her eyes, but not from makeup. "Sure. It sounds like you'll have to be presentable soon, anyway."

His face fell, but he sat on a stool and allowed her to do her work. She left silently after she had finished, leaving him to behold himself in the mirror. Although he looked cleaner and trimmer than an hour ago, his overall appearance was beaten and gaunt. He had lost several pounds, and knowing that he often lost his appetite in times of stress he knew that he wouldn't gain it back any time soon. Even though he had wanted to lose weight, he remembered his face as full and happy seven months ago where now it appeared frail and sickly.

Not wanting to think about it anymore, Ludwig slid off of the stool and shuffled over to his bed, where he collapsed onto the soft sheets and mattress. His mind wanted to race, so he concentrated on counting down from ten. By five he had fallen into a deep slumber plagued by nightmares.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: So I hope you guys found that last chapter...surprising. I like putting random twists in my storylines. Anyhow, this one turns out a lot nicer. The song I listened to for parts of it was "What the World Needs Now is Love" by Jackie DeShannon. Enjoy!**

Ludwig wrapped his cloak tightly around himself as he walked to town in the cloudy afternoon. He buried his face into his thick scarf as the beginnings of snow fluttered past his face. While he was away he completely missed summer and fall, the two times of the year when Dark Land could actually muster its own form of beauty. Now the landscape and sky were an almost uniform shade of gray, much like his mood. He wasn't sure what would happen when and if he came across Aurora; he would almost certainly feel his heart leap with elation at the mere sight of her, but it would quickly sink as he recalled the months of silence from her.

Most of the town had begun putting up wreaths and bows on their shops and houses, decorating for Christmas. The holiday was still a few weeks away, though, so the streets were not especially crowded. He perked up as he passed the music shop, searching for Aurora's familiar form in the windows, but she was not inside. He walked onward, the shops becoming further apart and fading into shabby houses. He nearly turned back around, but he spotted a brewery up ahead; a sign advertising a small bar area creaked in the wind. Curious and shivering, he decided to go inside for a moment.

Upon entering he found that he was the only patron in the tiny building. A fire growled away in the sooty fireplace at one end of the room and he walked to it, sitting on a rough wooden bench adjacent to it. He put his hands up to the heat, rubbing them together as he sighed with relief.

"Fireplace is for paying customers only." Came a rough female voice from behind the bar. Ludwig turned around and saw a bedraggled woman wiping down the countertop, her stringy turquoise hair pulled back into a bun. He thought that it might be Aurora's mother.

He approached the counter, sitting on a stool. "What do you have?"

"Your standard ales, liquors, and beers. However, the mead is made just back there in the brewery; the finest in Dark Land, so I highly recommend it." She said, planting her hands on her hips as she waited for his response.

"I'll take something strong that'll warm me up." He said, attempting to smile.

She gave him a once over. "You won't be disappointed. But…if you don't mind me saying, it looks like you ought to avoid drinking. Am I right?"

For a moment Ludwig was confused, but he soon understood. "Oh, you mean my shiner? I wasn't the least bit drunk when I got that one." He paused, sensing that she didn't believe him. "Well, if you don't mind _me_ asking…is there a girl—a woman—who works here named Aurora?"

Now he fully had the woman's attention. "How do you know Aurora?"

"We met a while back. I've been gone on…business…for the past several months and I was hoping to find her here and catch up." He replied.

The woman kept eye contact over her shoulder as she prepared his drink. "I see. It's just that…sometimes when people ask for Aurora…well, they don't come with the best intentions."

"I understand. I know that she gets into trouble now and again. Actually, one of the last times I saw her I helped her get out of a bad situation." He explained. "And even though I don't look the nicest right now, I promise that I bear no ill will toward anyone."

She pushed his drink over to him. "Hm. Well, either way, she's out at the moment. I don't know when she'll be back."

He thanked her, paid, and moved back over to the fireplace with his drink. He took a swig and tried to muffle his choking coughs; it was the strongest drink he had ever tasted. He puffed out a breath and took a smaller sip. Once finished (and thoroughly heated inside and out) he placed his glass on the counter and left. He pulled his cloak around himself again and decided to try again another time. At least he knew that Aurora was alright and still in town.

The snow fell in larger clumps than before and was starting to build up on the streets and rooftops. Steam rose from his hot breaths and drifted away. For a moment it seemed that nothing but the cold was on his mind; a welcome release after the stress of yesterday. Then, out of the silence came the tinkling of a bell on the door of a store up ahead. Looking up he noticed a figure exiting a shop.

The music shop.

Ludwig stopped in his tracks, squinting through the snow. A sudden gust of wind buffeted him and sent his scarf flying through the air. Cursing, he chased after it as it came down from its arch, tumbling down to the damp sidewalk. He pounced at it but found it to already be in someone else's hand.

"Is this your—," Said Aurora, her voice cutting off as her golden eyes found his worn but familiar face. They stared at one another in disbelief for a moment, the breeze ruffling their hair and clothes without them noticing.

Ludwig fumbled for words in his mind before finally asking, "Did you get my letters?"

Her rigid form relaxed and she smiled briefly. "I got every one of them."

Realizing how odd they must look crouching in the street with a scarf in their hands they straightened up and brushed themselves off, eye contact now an awkward occurrence. She pulled her threadbare cloak around herself as best she could, shivering.

"Here! Until we get somewhere warmer." He wrapped his thick scarf around her neck, his fingers brushing her jaw.

Finally she looked at him fully, shaking her head.

"What?" He asked.

She gestured to him. "Here you are again. You just pop out of nowhere, like you were never gone."

He shrugged, shuffling his feet.

"Come on. We'll go to the brewery." She said, walking past him.

"Oh, I was just there! Looking for you, actually." He said, striding to catch up and walk beside her.

"You probably met my mother then. Short hair the color of mine, rough around the edges."

He nodded. "Indeed. She served me the single most potent drink I've ever consumed. I feel a bit buzzed right now, truthfully; doesn't usually happen on the first drink for me."

They were quiet for a few minutes before she laughed, coming to an abrupt halt. "This is so _weird. _I mean you're just gone for seven months and then poof! You're back and we're having a normal freaking conversation. Don't you think that's weird? Like, just a _tiny bit?"_

He shrugged again. "Not really. We seemed to form a fairly strong bond the last time we were with each other. That bond endured despite being apart and now we're just picking up where we left off."

She pursed her lips, thinking. "Well, what if I've changed? It's been seven months, for God's sake! I mean, look at you, you've changed!" She thrust her hands out toward him. "Oh, and you broke your promise."

His eyebrows creased together for a moment. "No I didn't. I promised to come back in one piece, which I did. I told you I'd end up hurt somehow. But, no, I haven't really changed. I didn't do anything to change other than sit alone in a ramshackle fortress. I don't feel like you're different either."

She huffed out a breath in frustration. "Well, where's your belly? You're belly's gone."

"War time is lean time. I always slim down when I'm stressed." He responded.

Aurora looked him up and down for a moment, tightened his scarf around her neck, and whisked away down the street. Unsure of what their conversation meant, he followed quietly after her. Once they were back at the bar she greeted her mother, who looked at Ludwig with a kind of surprised disbelief.

"Well, I want to go into the back and wrap up in some blankets. Do the kids have a fire going?" Aurora asked, waving for Ludwig to follow her.

"They should. Enoch's been so excited about learning to breathe fire he's practically burnt the place to the ground." Her mother said as she wiped out a glass; her eyes never left Ludwig as he followed her daughter around the corner.

Aurora opened a narrow door and a warmly lit room was revealed. A fire crackled at one end with two chairs facing the flames. Directly behind them in the corner was a small gas stove, a few cabinets, and a counter and sink. Against the wall were two sets of bunk beds, one with another mattress beneath it on the floor. A small room behind them was evidently the bathroom.

"Rora's home!" Came a small voice from the top bunk. A little koopa girl and her two brothers came rushing out from their hiding places and embraced their eldest sister happily.

"Did you get lots of money?" Asked a scruffy green-haired boy of about eight years old.

Aurora glanced back at Ludwig briefly. "No, silly, that's not why I went out today."

"Where _did_ you go then?" Asked a taller black-haired boy who Ludwig assumed was Enoch; he appeared to be in his teens. His dark hair, which fell messily around his face, made his yellow eyes even more intense than Aurora's.

"None of your business! Who's the adult here, anyway?" She asked him, giving him a shove on the shoulder.

Suddenly Ludwig felt a small hand tapping his knee and looked down to see the little girl, who had long grass green hair and sky blue eyes.

"Who are you, mister?" She asked.

He knelt down so that he was level with the girl. "Hi. My name is Ludwig. I'm a friend of your sister's."

She nodded, her eyes floating upward. "Can I feel your hair?"

"Sure." He smiled, lowering his head slightly. He had readied himself for violent tugging similar to what his siblings had inflicted on him over the years, but she stroked and ran her fingers through it with surprising gentleness.

She giggled. "Hey Alfie come feel his hair!"

"Oooo!" The little boy gasped, zipping over with splayed fingers; the yank Ludwig received brought him back to childhood.

"Hey, cut it out!" Aurora scolded, scooping Alfie off of the ground.

"That's alright, you don't need to get upset with him." Ludwig said, rubbing his head as he stood up.

"Uh, who did you say you were again?" Enoch asked, his arms crossed.

"Ludwig. A friend of Aurora's."

Enoch turned his gaze to his sister. "You've never brought home a guy from _work."_

Aurora glared at Enoch, plopping Alfie onto one of the beds without breaking eye contact. She stalked forward and the boy soon lost his attitude and retreated to the kitchen space.

"Why don't you go help Mom clean up? And kids," She said, turning to the two youngest, "It's _snowing out."_

"SNOW!" They yelped in unison, grabbing a jumble of scarves and hats from hooks on the wall before shoving past Ludwig to get outside. Enoch followed soon after, giving him a curious once-over before shutting the door behind him; the boy's actions reminded him of their mother.

He laughed. "The two little ones remind me of my brothers Iggy and Lemmy when they were kids."

She gave a brief smile before gesturing for him to sit in one of the chairs by the fireplace; she turned them so that they faced each other. He did so, watching her as she dug around for something in a box by the wall.

"So how old are they all?" He asked to avoid silence.

"Enoch is fifteen and the twins, Alfie and Allie, are almost eight." She replied over her shoulder.

"Hm. Twins aren't normally different sexes, especially not identical ones. Did they share an egg?"

"They did." She sighed, sitting in the chair next to him with a bundle of letters in her lap.

His eyes fell on them, his eyebrows furrowing. "Are those my letters?"

She nodded, staring at her lap. "Yeah." She fidgeted in her seat, as though unsure of what to say. "I…I know you were probably upset that I never wrote back…and I should thank you for the money, even though I don't know why you sent it."

He laughed lightly. "For postage, actually. I said so in the letter. Was my handwriting too messy?"

She seemed to curl in on herself shamefully. "Listen…my family has been poor for as long as I can remember. So…so sacrifices had to be made. Um…" She trailed off, tucking back a piece of stray hair. "You remember that joke you told me about physics or whatever?"

"You mean the one about the photon?"

"Yeah…sure." She cleared her throat. "There's a reason I didn't understand it and it's not just because I didn't take a physics class. There's a lot of classes I never took…because Mom couldn't afford to keep me in school. So…" She took a deep breath before quietly saying, "I can't read. I mean, I can a little bit. I can read the bottles that the drinks come in and I know numbers. I can't write much either. I really only know how to sign my name." Her breathing was shaky. "I was so embarrassed when you sent those to me. I tried really hard to understand them and I knew that you would be sad when I never sent anything back. I'm just…I'm sorry."

Ludwig was floored by her confession. Up until this moment he had never fully understood the implications of poverty and the horrible state of the education system in his kingdom. He felt terrible for ever being angry toward her for not writing back.

"So now you know that instead of a heartless bitch I'm actually an illiterate idiot…" She mumbled.

"Aurora, no." He said softly, taking her hands in his. "I would never even consider _thinking_ such things about you. It's not as though you just didn't try in school, you never got the chance to make that choice. This is something that was completely out of your hands."

She met his eyes finally, her eyelashes damp.

He continued. "I know I haven't known you for a terribly long time, but I do know for a fact that you're anything but stupid or heartless. You have so many wonderful facets in your personality: your sense of humor, your willingness to understand people, the way you care for those around you. If you hadn't told me that just now, I never would have _imagined _that you couldn't do those things. So don't tell yourself that you're stupid or that anyone else thinks of you that way. Because I can tell you right now that they don't. That _I_ don't." He asserted, gazing intensely into her eyes.

The tears finally spilled from Aurora's eyes. At the same time she laughed and, using his grip on her hands to pull him closer, she pressed her lips to his. Ludwig's eyes were wide, the feeling of her lips brushing against his surreal. He felt her hand moving slowly up his forearm in a tender caress, smelled honeysuckle in her hair.

Then she pulled her lips away, her eyes opening and finding his as she lingered close to him. She giggled quietly at his expression (likely dumbfounded and dazed) and patted his arm, sitting back in her chair.

She wiped her eyes, grinning at him. "Let me guess: that was your first kiss."

For once Ludwig had nothing to say, his face pink with a blush.

She laughed, a new kind of tear escaping the corner of her eye. "You're too funny." She sighed, leaning forward again to peck his cheek. His face darkened from pink to red as he finally broke from his frozen stupor in the chair. He grasped his elbows as his head scrunched down between his shoulders.

"Aw, who's embarrassed now?" She teased, then put her hand on his cheek. "Hey. Nobody's ever said things like that to me before. I was…how would _you_ put it…I was simply _overcome_ by your sweetness."

He looked up at her with a crooked smile, his flushed features cooling back to normal. "I don't know how no one's ever seen in you what I see. _They_ must be the stupid ones."

Aurora fanned at her eyes. "You're gonna make me cry again, you turd." She then took the letters in her hands again, holding them out to him. "Hey…this might sound weird, but could you read these to me? I wanna know what happened while you were gone."

Remembering the content of some of the later letters, Ludwig's heart picked up speed again. "Uh…well…sure." He could deny her nothing. He took the stack of envelopes from her, already torn open, and searched for the first in the series. She stood from her chair and sat next to him on the arm of his so that she could look down at the indecipherable words. After he opened up the first letter he casually placed an arm around her.

"Alright, so most of them are fairly short, like this one. I mostly just wrote about arriving at the fortress and I asked about how you were doing." Ludwig said, moving to place the letter to the side.

"Hey, no! I said read them to me not give me a summary!" She demanded, jabbing a finger at the paper.

He shut his eyes with reluctance, but he unfolded the letter once more and began to read. "This is the first one I sent you back in May. 'Dearest Aurora, I've just been dropped in the Sky Worlds from the Doomship.'" He continued on through the letters, Aurora occasionally pointing out words she knew to give him an idea of what she was able to understand; it wasn't much.

"Oh, what was with September's letter? It was only like a sentence long." Aurora inquired when they got to the tiny note.

"Ha! This one should get us a laugh." Ludwig said, reading through it valiantly without dissolving into chuckles until the end. "So, as you can see, I was a bit drunk. I had actually forgotten what all I wrote; it felt like a lot more at the time!"

She sighed after her laughter had subsided. "That's hysterical." They continued onward, their moods changing once he began reading the November letter aloud. He paused for a while once he reached the final letter.

"This one is embarrassing to say the least." He muttered. "I sound so desperate and pathetic."

"Just tell me what it says." She implored quietly.

He read on unwillingly, a frown pulling at the corners of his mouth. "Yours…Ludwig." He finished, folding it back up and putting it away.

She leaned against him. "Geez. That was sad. But you know I would have written you back if I could."

He nodded. "I know. But that summarizes everything major that happened to me; what about you?"

She sighed, going back to her chair. "Well, we had a rough patch about a month ago. My uncle had a heart attack and passed away so I had to start working at the bar with Mom so we could get by. They nearly put us on the street after he was buried."

"That's terrible! I'm so sorry." Ludwig murmured, his thoughts suddenly rushing back to the castle, where his father lay in impenetrable unconsciousness.

"Yeah, Mom's still pretty shaken up about it. But that little bit of money you sent came at just the right time; I almost wondered if you knew somehow…" She trailed off, noting his expression. "Is something wrong?"

He shook himself out of it, deciding not to say anything. "It's nothing. I just have a lot on my mind. I should honestly start heading home."

"Oh. Alright." Her face fell slightly, but she stood and walked to the door. "Here's your scarf. It's probably colder out there now." She held the fluffy wrap out to him.

He took her hands and pushed it back to her. "You keep it. I have plenty back at the castle."

She smiled. "I'll walk you outside." Together they went back through the bar and out the front door, where they watched Alfie and Allie attempt to build a snowman for a few moments. "Do you want to meet up in a day or two?"

He nodded excitedly. "Sure! Anywhere in particular?"

She thought for a moment. "How about that little place we went after you followed me down the alleyway?" She grinned deviously at the memory.

He rolled his eyes. "That sounds lovely. I'll meet you for lunch." He stood hesitantly for a moment before leaning down to her and planting a small kiss on her cheek. Aurora giggled at him, her cheeks rosy, and she patted his shoulder before turning to go back inside. Ludwig smiled the whole way home.


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: Hope you like this one; it begins in a hurry. ;) Remember to tell me what you think!**

Ludwig sprinted back up the corridor to his father's room, clutching his wand and a vial of green mushroom jelly in his hands. He blasted through the door finding Kamek performing an oxygenation spell on Bowser, whose breathing had all but ceased, the heart monitor they had attached to him flat lining.

"Open his mouth!" Ludwig roared to Kamek, who hurriedly pried the dying king's jaws apart. The frantic prince poured the gelatinous potion down his father's throat, the ceaseless ring of the heart monitor resounding in his ears like a shriek of death. Pointing his wand at his hand, Ludwig electrified it; he tossed the wand aside, clasping his hands together as blue sparks leaped from them. Lightning flashed between his hands as he pulled them apart, silently praying for his stress-charged idea to work. Channeling his energy with as much concentration as he could muster, he pressed his hands to his father's chest, the dying king's waning form arching upward from the shock. The heart monitor beeped away normally. The unconscious form began to breathe again and fell back onto the bed.

"God almighty." Kamek hissed shakily, adjusting his thick glasses. "Do you think everything worked?"

Ludwig pushed his hair out of his face, dripping sweat. "Well his heart's beating normally again. The jelly should be working to stop the internal bleeding as we speak." He let out a loud breath, putting his hands on his head to stop himself from passing out. "I'll be outside for a moment. Let me know if anything changes."

He walked as calmly as possible into the hallway, shutting the heavy doors behind him. Peering out the window at the thick darkness he determined that it was around four in the morning. Without warning a chuckle caught in his throat, wild laughter bubbling up and out of him.

"What the FUCK?" He howled, pounding a fist to the wall, his lungs wheezing as he attempted to breathe around the laughter. Finally he regained control of himself and leaned against the rough stone wall. He saw his cloak in a heap nearby and reached into one of its pockets, producing a cigarette. He blew a spark of fire, lighting it, and took a long drag, his hand shaking.

Suddenly Roy appeared from the shadows, Larry not far behind him.

"What the hell's going on?" Larry asked, his voice heavy from sleep.

"You're smoking again." Roy pointed out.

Ludwig shot him a deadly glare, taking another drag without breaking eye contact. "I just revived our fucking father. I think I can have a fucking cigarette, if that's fucking okay with you." He grated out deliberately.

Roy and Larry's eyes were wide, their mouths clamped shut.

Ludwig sighed, letting the smoke out through his nostrils. "Sorry."

Larry crossed his arms. "No need to say sorry. But…he's okay, right?"

"As far as I know." He laughed. "I get woken up at three in the morning to Kamek screaming in my face and shaking me, telling me that Father isn't breathing. It was all such a blur. It didn't seem real."

Roy shook his head. "Dude."

Ludwig turned to look out the window again; the stars sparkled through the clouds. "If you want to go in and keep Kamek company I'm sure he'd appreciate it. I…I'm going to try to get some sleep." He mumbled, walking past them.

The sun shifted just enough to land squarely on Ludwig's face. His eyes scrunched tightly against the light, but soon flickered open. He sat up, finding himself sprawled across his bed with drool wetting the side of his face. With a groan he wiped at himself, stretching at the same time. His droopy eyes landed on the clock next to his bed, taking a full minute to register what time it was.

1:32pm.

"SHIT!" He shot out of bed, remembering that he was supposed to meet Aurora for lunch. The blankets wrapped around his legs caused him to fall face-first into the ground, where he cursed loudly and untangled himself rapidly. He rinsed out his mouth and splashed water on his face in one fell swoop, then began yanking a brush through his tangled hair, his eyes watering from the pain. He grabbed his cloak as he ran out the door.

He made it half way to town before he finally stopped, his hands on his knees as he gasped for breath. For a moment he was surprised that he had managed to run that far; he patted himself on the shoulder for encouragement. When at last he made it to town, half-jogging the rest of the way, he sought out the little pub where he hoped Aurora still waited for him. He saw her sitting at a table for two in the window.

He rushed over and sat down, still breathing irregularly. "I am _so_ sorry about that. I had a rough night last night and overslept. I'm sure you were probably getting ready to leave."

Aurora furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "What? I just got here like ten minutes ago."

"But lunch is at noon."

"Uh…for _you_ maybe. I eat when there's not a lot to do at work, which is around now." She raised her eyebrows at him and patted his hand. "Cool your jets."

Ludwig twitched with excess adrenaline, letting his head fall to the table with a thud. The waiter came and asked them what they wanted, to which Aurora ordered two coffees to start.

She put her head on the table and lifted his mess of hair so she could see his eyes. "Hey there. You gonna be okay?"

He sat up properly, putting a hand on his head. "I will. There's just a completely inappropriate amount of stress in my life right now."

She tilted her head to one side. "What's going on?"

He was quiet for a moment, pondering whether or not he should tell her. "Um…okay, you know how King Bowser always has his crazy schemes, right?"

She nodded. "I hear about them all the time. People around here get really angry about them because of all the damage caused by the Mario Brothers when they come through. The King always raises taxes around that time too, so it's hard."

He continued. "I know. But, I came home a few days ago and my siblings told me that our father is…dying." Saying it made it feel all the more real. "So he's been in a state of comatose for a while now and last night he nearly died. I was able to save him, but he's still declining." He paused, staring at the table. "For a moment I thought that I'd be wearing the crown by this morning."

Aurora's eyes widened. "Wait, wait, wait. Are…are you _first in line?"_

He nodded.

She fell back in her seat. "Holy crap."

"I know, right? I never pictured having to take on that responsibility so soon. I always—,"

"So, what you're saying is that you're gonna be king?" She cut him off.

He looked up at her, slightly aggravated. "Yes. That's what first in line means."

She leaned forward. "You. Ludwig. On the _throne."_

"Yep." He said shortly.

Her face broke out in a smile. "That's great! I mean, it's really sad that your dad's dying, but just think! I know what a good person you are, so imagine the great things you'll be able to do for this kingdom. You're the one who's going to bring us that bright and shining tomorrow everyone in Dark Land has been dreaming of!"

Ludwig stared at her in amazement and uncertainty. He thoroughly enjoyed hearing that she thought so highly of him, but he now felt an even larger weight on his shoulders knowing the expectations people evidently had for him. The task ahead of him became all the more daunting.

"Um." He mustered dumbly.

Giggling with excitement, she threw her arms around his neck, embracing him tightly. He exhaled lightly and leaned his head against her before she pulled away. She smiled at him brightly before holding up a hand to signal the waiter.

Ludwig looked up at her hand, at the intricate eye tattooed there. His eyes shot wide open, his memory taking him back to a few days before, standing over his father's bed for the first time. Kamek's wishful sigh came to him above the din of the restaurant.

"It's times like this when I wish I could read minds."

His hand sprung up grabbed her wrist, causing her to jump and glare at him, confused. "Aurora. We need to go right now."

She looked around quickly, fear in her eyes. "What? Is something wrong?"

"No. Just come with me!" Leaving a few coins on the table, he rushed from the pub with Aurora in tow. Wanting to reach the castle as quickly as possible, he stopped suddenly in the streets and pulled her close to him.

"Have you ever teleported before?" He asked breathlessly.

"No! What—," She squeaked.

"Hold on tight!" He ordered before shutting his eyes in concentration. With a gust of wind they were sucked into a whirl of colors without sound, motionless. Then, as suddenly as they had entered the silent vortex, they left it, a small tornado of air rushing around them as they reappeared in front of the castle.

"What the ever-loving FUCK?" Aurora raged, tearing herself away from him and stumbling into a wall.

"Sorry, it's weird and I don't do it that often but LET'S GO!" Ludwig apologized hastily before grabbing her hand and pulling her along behind him. She shouted and punched at him a few times as they ran through the corridors to the immense double-doors of Bowser's bedroom. Aurora stopped yelling once he opened the doors, causing her to realize where she was. They both gasped for air as quietly as possible as they stepped into the room toward the bed. They stood beside it for a moment before she punched his arm forcefully, glaring at him as he frowned and rubbed at the bruise.

"So…this is King Bowser." She said, her eyes locked on the king's motionless form.

"Yes. And I'll explain why I've brought you here now." He winced, lowering his hand. "Sometimes when people are in comas like this they still react when they know their loved ones are nearby, even if they can't communicate it physically. The idea finally hit me that perhaps you could look into his mind…tell me if he's still there."

She looked up at him nervously. "I…I don't know. I can try, though." Hesitantly, she reached her hand out to Bowser's forehead, pressing it down gently. Her body froze and Ludwig was amazed to see her eyes glowing completely white; since he had only ever experienced her powers firsthand he had never seen her during the process. Sometimes the hand she pressed to Bowser's forehead would twitch, the fingers spasming ever so slightly. A few minutes later her eyes faded back to normal, the bright yellow irises returning, and she stepped away from the bed tiredly.

Ludwig approached her. "Did…did you see anything?"

Aurora met his eyes. "He was angry that I was invading his thoughts, because he didn't know who I was. It was hard work trying to explain what was going on."

He couldn't help but smile, relieved. "That sounds like him. What else happened?"

"I finally managed to tell him what was going on and he calmed down. He asked about your siblings, but mostly about you." She paused, a sadness in her eyes. "He said that he was very tired and that he wanted the chance to talk to each of his children before…"

He looked over at where his father lay dying, for the first time fully comprehending that the lively, ambitious man was never coming back. "I understand."

She put a hand comfortingly on his arm. "Listen, I know that the only way that he'll be able to say what he needs to is through me. So I'll come here as much as I need to until the end."

He gazed down at her in astonishment at her kindness. "You'll…really do that?"

She nodded, offering him a small smile. "It's the least I can do for you." He embraced her tightly, holding her close; she wrapped her arms around him, kissing his shoulder.

"You're going to get through this. I promise." She whispered. He hoped that this promise was one that would not be broken.


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: Oh boy, this is a sad one, so buckle up and get ready for feels. Hope you all are liking this so far!**

Aurora walked up the road toward the castle, where Ludwig waited for her just outside the gates. He mustered a smile as she approached and, on a whim, embraced her softly for a few private moments. She smiled back at him and together they walked back into the soaring corridors, her hand moving comfortingly along his back.

They found Larry waiting outside of Bowser's bedroom, his hands folded grimly in front of him. The dying king wished to speak to his children from youngest to oldest, so Larry was to be the first to have his last conversation with their father. Aurora was to channel Bowser's thoughts through herself and into those he wished to speak to; since the process was extremely draining, she decided to give one sibling their message each day that she came.

With a heavy sigh, Larry looked up at Aurora. "Alright. I'm ready when you are." She nodded, beckoning for him to follow her into the room. The heavy doors closed behind them.

A half-hour passed, Ludwig pacing about the hallway in case his assistance was needed. The doors reopened and Larry walked slowly by without a sound, his face burning with suppressed emotion.

"How was it?" Ludwig asked Aurora when she entered the hallway.

"It was hard even for me to listen to. I'm more exhausted than I thought I would be." She replied, her normally lively form sagging. "But…your dad…he loves you guys a lot."

He shrugged. "I suppose I know that. It was difficult to tell sometimes." He put a hand on her shoulder. "I can't thank you enough for doing this, though."

She smiled tiredly before heading home for the night.

The next day was Morton's turn. Having never met Aurora before he acted shyly toward her, not saying a word. However, by the end of his message he embraced her and showered her with thanks before retreating to his room for time alone. Wendy came next, already crying lightly by the time Aurora arrived. She sobbed heavily as she exited Bowser's room, collapsing into her oldest brother's arms. Ludwig held her tightly for a moment before, surprisingly, she fell silent, righted herself, and walked away down the hall.

Iggy greeted Aurora nervously, uncertain of what was to come. He left the room with her by his side, her arm wrapped around his trembling shoulders. Roy attempted to make the situation light-hearted, making jokes about stealing her away once they were alone together. By the end he was solemn, merely clearing his throat and thanking her shortly before shuffling to his room with his head hung. Lemmy smiled, twiddling his thumbs anxiously. He left without his usual childish mannerisms, tears falling from his eyes quietly.

Finally, after a week of restless nights, it was Ludwig's turn. He and Aurora stood outside the heavy doors together, the finality of it all weighing down on them.

"Are you ready?" She asked him gently.

He concentrated on the wood grain of the doors, finding patterns in their looping irregularity, to prevent himself from getting sick. He swallowed painfully. "Yes. We should go now." She grasped his hand tightly and opened one of the doors.

He stood over his father, waiting while Aurora made the connection with Bowser's mind first. As instructed, when her eyes turned white he took her other hand, almost instantly sucked into the world of their thoughts. He sifted through Aurora's mind, flashes of her life passing him by as he channeled himself to his father. With a whirl of colors and voices he emerged into a silent place, stark and unoccupied. He searched around cautiously for any sign of activity but found none; only silence.

"Ludwig." He jumped when his father's voice called out from behind him. Turning around, he noticed Bowser, looking younger and healthier than he had in many years, sitting casually in a chair.

"Father." Ludwig replied, still uncertain.

Bowser gave a small grin. "You've always been so formal with me. Up until recently I never really understood why." Memories flickered by in the background, Ludwig uttering the word over and over throughout his life. "Even when you were a baby, I was never 'Papa' or 'Daddy'. Just 'Father'. I…I suppose it was because I never earned the affection required for you to call me that." There was a pause before he gestured to another chair that slowly came into view in front of him. "Why don't you sit down?"

Ludwig took the seat tentatively, finally attempting to meet his father's eyes. "Is…is there anything you want to talk to me about?"

Bowser shrugged. "There are a lot of things I want to talk to you about. But I've waited too long and now I only have a little bit of time to say it all." There was a hint of remorse in his voice, something Ludwig had never heard there before. "Listen, Luddy—,"

"Don't call me that." Ludwig cut him off.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not a _child._ I never got the chance to be a child and now I never will be. If anyone is a _child_ in this situation it's _you."_ He growled, his face growing hot with years of bitterness. "If you just would have listened to me for once in your stubborn life then this wouldn't be happening to me. To any of us."

It was quiet, which Ludwig had not anticipated: he expected to receive another swat to the face or an uproar of rage. In a way this unsettled him far more, seeing his father watching him stoically in his chair, motionless.

"Are you going to let me talk now?" Bowser asked softly. Although he still bristled with confusion, Ludwig nodded. "Alright. Now…I've been using these past few days of talking with your siblings and just being unconscious to really think about what I need to say to you. And I want to start by saying…that I am so sorry. I'm so deeply sorry, Ludwig." His voice was hoarse, his grizzled head moving back and forth slowly.

Ludwig locked eyes with his father. "You…you're sorry?"

"Yes, I am. Because I was never a good father. I always put you and your siblings second to what I wanted and, you're right, it got us here. And it's taken me this long—until I'm on my death bed—to realize how terrible I was. I threw a lot on your shoulders," memories of Ludwig trying to keep his siblings in order over the years flashed by, "and that wasn't fair. So…I feel bad that things had to turn out this way." Although he was making great strides in admitting his faults, the king still lacked eloquence in his speech.

Ludwig nodded in encouragement, now more in control of his emotions. "Thank you for saying that. I…I've waited a long time to hear those words from you."

There was another lengthy pause before Bowser cleared his throat and continued. "Um, I guess that the reason we fought so much is because of how similar we are."

Ludwig couldn't help but laugh. "How _similar_ we are? We aren't similar in the slightest."

"Okay, well, yes you have your culture and your…your fine wine and music and whatnot." Bowser stammered. "But you also have my stubbornness. You love to hear yourself talk. So, when you would voice your thoughts like you did not too long ago it would frustrate me to no end: because I'm stubborn, too, and I have to get my way or I throw a tantrum." He paused to chuckle, memories of his childish rages playing behind him momentarily. "That's why we've butted heads so much over the years. Because we both have ideas about how things should be and those ideas don't always line up. Still…I'm sorry that we fought so much." He scratched the back of his head. "I…I wish that we could've used those similarities to…be closer, or something."

Knowing that his father wasn't adept at expressing his affectionate side, Ludwig took the opportunity to speak. "I understand. I wish we could have gotten along better, too. But, that's in the past now and we can't do anything about it, so I think we should take this opportunity to make up with one another." He cleared his throat, clasping his hands. "I'm sorry for the times when I got into fights with you. I said a lot of things that I immediately regretted because…even though I got frustrated with you much of the time, I looked up to you very much. For a long time there was a part of me that wanted to be just like you. I even debated shaving my hair into a mohawk like yours, once."

Bowser gasped. "You were going to shave your hair for me?"

Ludwig chuckled. "Indeed I was. But then I got too afraid that the razor would get lost in the tangles." They laughed together for a moment. Listening to the echoes bouncing back to them, they couldn't tell whose voice was whose, they sounded so alike.

"You know what." Bowser said, his voice warm. "There isn't anyone in the world that I'd rather have take my place than you."

Ludwig's eyes snapped back to his father. "R-really?"

Bowser nodded, trying to stay nonchalant. "Sure. I'll admit that I left a lot of shit to be sorted out, but if there's anyone I know could figure it out, it's you. You…" He struggled to voice his compliments, "You're so smart. You're brilliant, really. And you're brave enough to take it on. You're _strong_ enough to take it on. You're going to be just fine."

"How can you be so certain?"

He paused. "Because…you've made it this far. What happens next is just one more step of the hundreds you've taken already."

Suddenly a dimness began to descend on the bright world surrounding them. They met each other's eyes and brought themselves to a stand.

"Well, it looks like I'm getting tired. I think I have to go." Bowser commented. "Your, ah…_friend_ did a really great job. I like her."

Ludwig smiled. "I like her too."

Bowser stepped forward and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Didn't think I'd see the day when you met a girl. I'm glad I did." He gave his son a comforting squeeze. "Keep your family safe. And your kingdom. You'll do far better than I ever dreamed." He turned to leave, darkness causing him to start fading away.

"B-but, wait!" Ludwig called out, desperation in his voice. "What am I supposed to do?" The area around him was nearly black, his father lost in the shadows. "Dad, please!"

At that moment a single memory began to play before him. Bowser walked with Kamek through the corridors as snow drifted by the windows. They soon came upon a door, slightly cracked open, with music pouring out of it. Bowser pushed the door open enough so that he could peer inside to see Ludwig playing the new guitar he had received for Christmas to his siblings, who all danced joyfully around him. Bowser smiled and turned to Kamek.

"I know I complain about his music sometimes, but I really like it. That boy…he makes me proud." He sighed, shutting the door again.

Reality finally pulled Ludwig out of his father's mind, the empty bedroom flooding back to him. He stepped back from the bed dizzily, his thoughts jumbled.

Aurora came forward, sadness lining her face. "Are you going to be okay?"

Ludwig nodded stiffly, his breathing uneven. Not wanting her to see him cry he rushed from the room, his footsteps echoing hollowly around him. Finally he reached his bedroom, where he walked to the window and looked out over the world that would soon be in his hands. He let out a long sigh before sitting on his bed, surprised that he had not immediately broken down. But, the last memory played itself over and over again in his mind until finally the hot tears overflowed from his eyes.

Ludwig did not notice when Aurora entered the room. When she sat next to him he allowed himself to be cradled in her arms while he sobbed. The sun began to set and at last he became quiet again.

"I…I never knew that he was proud of me." He murmured.

"Now you know that he is. I could feel that the second I made the connection with him." She told him softly, stroking his hair.

He sat up, wiping his face dry. "I apologize that you had to see that."

She rolled her eyes. "I don't care. You've seen me cry before. Just tell me what else is on your mind; it's better to let it out than have it weigh you down."

He shook his head. "I'm just so…_scared."_

"Why?"

"I have an entire kingdom to look after now. It's a place with so many problems to face and I know that all I'm going to get is criticism for being Bowser's son and therefore being no different from him. I'm terrified of the mistakes I'm going to make and of losing what freedom I have left now. It's just…It's all happened so quickly."

She put an arm around him. "Listen, I don't have the slightest idea what that's like, but…well, it's like I said and what your dad said. You're a great person for the job and once you get all of the problems straightened out you'll be able to take care of the biggest ones in the best way possible."

"But HOW?" He hissed, pulling away from her. "HOW do I go about finding those problems? HOW do I figure out HOW to solve them? HOW do I come up with the _brilliant_ ideas that will make everything _wonderful?"_

She stared into his reddened eyes and shook her head. "I don't know. The point is that you've always found a way. So this time will be no different. Your siblings and I, we all believe in you and we'll help guide you through this." She said, leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek.

Ludwig shut his eyes, lost in her kiss for the briefest of moments before his greatest idea struck him, forcing him to a stand. "We need to gather everyone."

Not fifteen minutes later Ludwig stood before his siblings in the throne room, Aurora at his side.

"I know that we're in a difficult time right now." He began. "But it is inevitable that I will be taking the throne very soon. This is why I have called you here, to tell you about how _we_ will make this kingdom better.

"Over the years it has become obvious that we all have different abilities that we have honed to near perfection. We've just been using them for the wrong purposes. Now, although I will become king and take on the brunt of the responsibilities, I ask that, as my siblings, you help me in certain areas." He paused, letting his statement sink in. "For example: Larry has always been the money man in this household, so I would appoint him as my financial advisor; Roy and Morton each show exceptional strength in military tactics, so I would promote them to generals of the Dark Land army; Wendy has always known what she wants to see in the kingdom, so I would go to her for advice for improvements in local towns and cities; Lemmy has always had a way with children, so he could help me figure out what the next generation of Dark Landers want in their kingdom; and Iggy would aid in innovation by using his exceptional technical know-how."

He turned to Aurora. "And Aurora would become my eyes and ears to public life. You know what the majority of people in this kingdom need and want so by relaying that information to me I could sort out the most urgent problems and work toward figuring them out." He faced everyone. "So…how does that sound?"

There was a pause before Larry stepped forward. "I think it sounds great. Ludwig's taken care of us our whole lives, so now it's time for us to help him out. It's time for us all to grow up and take on a little responsibility."

Wendy raised her hand. "Okay, well I'm also going to be the Head of Beautification, 'cause this place is damn ugly."

"I'm sure we can work something out." Ludwig smiled. As everyone began clamoring about the things they wanted to do once their eldest brother became king, he turned to Aurora, who took his hand with a small grin.

"I knew you would figure it out." She whispered to him.

Days passed by as Ludwig worked with his siblings to figure out what each of their places would be once their time came. Then, one afternoon Kamek found them gathered in the dining room and delivered the news that their father had passed away. The day after, a funeral procession was prepared and the Dark Land military donned their black uniforms and flags to march through town, the black shrouded royal family in the lead. Atop the highest hill in Dark Land, Bowser's pyre was prepared and set alight, his ashes soaring up to mingle with the stars.


	15. Chapter 15

"I crown you _King_ Ludwig Von Koopa the First." Kamek's voice echoed throughout the throne room as he placed the crown upon Ludwig's head, applause ringing out. However, rather than feeling just the cool metal resting there, he felt a sharp, terrible pain as claw-like appendages extended from the crown and buried themselves in his skull. He gasped sharply at the pain, trying not to scream in front of the ocean of onlookers beneath him. He turned to them, attempting to speak as blood dripped down his face and neck. Before he could utter a word his attention was drawn to the tall scepter in his right hand; crackling vines of thorns wrapped themselves around his arm, constricting and piercing his flesh. He breathed shakily as terror turned his pupils to slits. A spotlight shot down from the sky to the throne, now a deep, dead brown with thorns and the same grasping appendages waiting for him.

"No." He uttered, his voice was muffled as though he were underwater. Kamek shoved him into the throne, where the claws clamped down onto his shoulders and ankles, every part of his body screaming with pain as he bled. The crowd of onlookers rose up in a tidal wave, screeching angrily at him and laughing. Although their faces were distorted by evil, he could pick out his siblings and Aurora, jabbing their crooked fingers at him mockingly. Finally they all melted hideously together to form the gnarled, growling face of Bowser, who opened his massive jaws and let out a mighty jet of flame to consume him.

With a yell, Ludwig shot up in bed, his blankets tangled around him. Drenched in sweat and gasping for breath, he slowly took in his bedroom, the quiet darkness around him. With a heavy sigh he leaned back against his headboard and ran a hand through his dampened hair. After a moment he turned to his bedside table to see what time it was.

4:48am. December 25th. Christmas morning. He got out of bed for a moment, his legs shaking, and wondered how he was still having the same nightmares even on the happiest holiday of the year. He passed by what would soon be Aurora's violin, which he had taken out from its hiding place and tied a bow around. Grateful for a gentler presence in his mind, he leaned against the wall by the window; the town was much brighter this time of year, as the trees were bare and the Christmas lights were plentiful. Snow floated by in large flakes, covering the ground. Although he wanted to go back to bed, Ludwig knew that he wouldn't unwind enough for a long time. Instead he decided to get washed up and go into the designated family room to set up everything nicely for his siblings when they woke up.

"Hey. Hey, Ludwig." Larry's voice came to him foggily. "Excuse me, Your Majestic Sleepiness!" He felt Larry shoving him in the shoulder.

Finally Ludwig sat up, finding himself on the long, plush couch in the family room. Wiping at his eyes, he greeted his brother, "Morning. Merry Christmas."

"Cocoa?" Larry asked, handing him a steaming mug. "Also, can I ask what you're doing in here?"

Ludwig blew the steam from his drink, which he was glad to find hosting a generous amount of marshmallows. "Oh, it's that dream again—no this isn't a dream, it's the _definition_ of a nightmare. It keeps happening every night. So, I decided to make myself useful and spruce this place up for everybody since I knew I'd never get back to sleep."

Larry shrugged, sipping his own cocoa. "That's nice. But, ah…you have control of the servants now. You could've told them to do it."

"Well, I needed to occupy _my_ mind, not theirs." He shut his eyes for a moment, calming his rising temper. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be testy with you on Christmas. Ever since the coronation I've been a massive bundle of nerves."

Larry gave a crooked, sympathetic smile. "I know it has to be really stressful for you right now. But, remember, nobody's expecting you to do anything major until after the holidays, so just try to enjoy yourself, okay?"

Ludwig nodded, drinking more of his hot chocolate.

"Is Aurora coming today?" His younger brother asked.

"Oh, definitely." He responded, glad of the subject change.

"Um." Larry put a hand on the back of his head. "If you don't mind me asking…what exactly is going on between you two? I mean you haven't…"

Ludwig cocked his head to one side. "Haven't what?"

"You haven't…you know…_done_ stuff?"

"We've done many things! I've taken her out to eat, we've played instruments together, and…we've even _kissed."_

_"Wow!"_ Larry exclaimed in mock amazement. "No, you doofus, I meant _other_ things!"

Ludwig stared at his brother in utter confusion before it finally hit him. "OH! No, good lord, no. That would be moving far too quickly."

_"Seriously?_ I mean…most of the time it's a one-night fling and you move on."

"It _is?"_

"Christ almighty."

Ludwig held up a hand to stop his brother. "Let's move on to a different subject to spare me from further embarrassment. To answer your initial question we…" He trailed off. "We, uh…well, now that I think of it, I've never formally asked if she would like to be with me."

Larry shook his head. "You're so weird."

Soon after their awkward conversation, their other siblings entered the room. As per tradition, they ate Christmas cookies for breakfast and passed around small gifts to each other. They swapped stories from their childhood and tried to be as cheerful as possible, but the void left by their father's absence weighed on them. So, when a koopa servant tip-toed over to Ludwig to tell him that Aurora had arrived, he found it a welcome excuse to leave.

He opened the door to find her waiting outside a new, bright red cloak that made her vibrant against the pale, snowy backdrop. "Hello there. Merry Christmas!" He said with a smile.

"And a Happy New Year!" Aurora replied. "Do you like my new cloak? My mom made it for me."

"It's lovely." He said, beckoning for her to come inside. "You were able to get here without any trouble, I presume?"

"You presume correctly, Your Majesty." She teased him, moving to take off her cloak.

"Here, let me help you." He said, moving behind her and gently removing it from her shoulders. She turned to him and rolled her eyes, but followed him to the family room; his siblings had since abandoned it for the banquet hall to get more substantial food.

He sighed at the mess of wrapping paper around the tree. "I see they did a fantastic job of cleaning up." He bent over, gathering it in his hands.

"Uh, don't you have servants to do that?" She asked.

He stopped, letting the paper fall from his hands. "I…I suppose I could leave it."

There was an awkward silence before she handed him a package from behind her back. "Here. I brought you something."

He gave her a curious look as he unwrapped the paper. He unfolded a thick navy blue cloak with gold lining. "Oh wow." He said, rubbing the soft material between his fingers. "It's so sturdy. How much did this cost you?"

"I only paid for the material needed to make it. I sewed it for you myself." She said proudly. "There were times when I stayed up all night working on it so I could have it finished by Christmas. But, try it on, I wanna see how it fits!"

Ludwig smiled at her in amazement as he wrapped it around his shoulders. "Fits like a glove!" He said, examining his reflection in the window; he turned and strutted around with a smug expression on his face. "Damn, I'm handsome."

Aurora laughed. "Yeah, it looks really good on you."

"Well, I have something for you too. I've had it for quite a while now." He said, excitement building within him. "Okay, it's not exactly wrapped, so close your eyes." He told her, watching to make sure she had them fully covered before reaching behind the tree for her violin. Holding it behind his back, he approached her with a grin on his face. "Alright. Open."

She uncovered her eyes and jumped slightly at the sight of the violin; her eyes were wide and she covered her mouth in shock. "I-Is that…that's the violin I always played in the shop! Somebody bought it…right after you left…" She examined the widening smile on his muzzle. "You turd! I can't believe you did that."

"I know! But, take it." He held it gently out to her and she took it tenderly in her hands.

A small smile emerged on her face as she looked down at it. "I…never thought it would be _mine."_ She took the bow and played a few notes, the scales rising on her arms the way they had the first time he saw her in town. Then Aurora placed it aside, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him deeply. Although Ludwig was still astonished at the feeling, he was able to come to his senses enough to kiss her back, his hands moving cautiously forward to rest on her waist. Suddenly Larry's question popped into his mind and, after a few more pleasurable moments, he pulled away.

"I have a question." He said huskily.

"Are you a good kisser? Eh, you'll get there eventually." She teased, patting his cheek.

He frowned. "Ah. Well, actually…I suppose I was wondering…" Uncertain of how to word it, he trailed off.

Her eyebrows slowly rose. "What are you going for right now? Remember, today is a religious holiday."

His face burned. "It's nothing like that! I just wasn't sure what our, uh, _status_ is."

"Our…_status?"_

"You know! I simply realized that we never formally stated whether or not we're…_together."_

Aurora looked surprised. "I thought someone as smart as you would've had that figured out by now. But, I guess…can we? Now that you're king and all."

Ludwig sighed. "You should know by now how inept I am at social relations. But, as for your question, the _king_ can be with whomever he chooses." He smiled wryly at her.

She crossed her arms. "What will the public say? Seeing the highest royalty in the land with a common peasant."

Channeling as much romantic smoothness as he could muster, he stroked her hair lightly. "They can get used to it."

"Oooo! It's sexy-time Ludwig!" She giggled.

"What." His act crumbled.

She rolled her eyes light-heartedly. "It doesn't matter. But just so you know," She took his hands in hers, "I now pronounce us boyfriend and girlfriend!"

He laughed. "Okay, now that it's been explicitly stated, I understand."

Picking up her violin, she took his hand and they walked through the corridors together. They reached the banquet hall and found the rest of Ludwig's siblings waiting for them as they munched on Christmas ham.

Roy jumped up from his seat with a cheer. "Alright! Aurora, did you show this guy how it's done?"

Ludwig immediately turned and made to leave the hall, his siblings howling with laughter.

"Oh, come on, Luddy Buddy! Get back in here!" Wendy called out to him.

"For God's sake, I'm KING now! Doesn't that count for anything?" He growled, his face bright red.

The others turned to each other, shrugging, and gave a collective, "No."

Aurora laughed and held his hand again, leading him back to the table. Soon over his embarrassment, Ludwig joined his siblings in their folly as the snow fell quietly outside the window, the winter's cold unable to take them in its grasp.


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note: WHOAAAAA WHAT'S UP GUYS IT'S BEEN ENTIRELY TOO LONG. Anyway, here's the next installment! Hope you like it and give me your thoughts. :D**

The holidays now at a close, the new king and his court worked through ideas for improving the kingdom. Wendy had begun renovations on the castle inside and out, with Ludwig overseeing every decision to ensure his mighty fortress didn't turn out pink (although she simply couldn't understand what he had against the color). Larry had been tirelessly working to figure out the budget and debts of Dark Land, since their late father had stopped attempting to balance it long ago. Meanwhile, Ludwig himself had decided to hold a series of public forums in some of the kingdom's major towns and cities, telling Aurora to keep her eyes and ears open for him.

Since they were officially together, and her family had been told of his identity, he had decided to offer her family a holiday gift as well: a cozy, yet generous cottage in the rolling hills near the castle. Her mother, who now insisted he call her by her first name, Ambrosia (or Rose for short), had warmed up to him quickly. Even so, he wasn't entirely sure whether it was because of himself as a person or because she was afraid of his immense power.

Today was to be the start of the forums, held first in Aurora's hometown. Ludwig met her in the town square, where a stage and podium had been set up for him, royal flags billowing in the chilly wind.

"Hello, dearest." He greeted her, kissing her cheek.

"Your dad was right, you _are_ super formal." She replied. "But, anyway, are you nervous at all? Public speaking seems like something that would be hard for you."

He shrugged. "I suppose I'm a bit apprehensive about it. But Father flaunted us around in public all the time when we were younger; these people at least know my face by now."

"Well, I've been hearing a lot of people saying they're surprised about the forums you're holding. It seems like there's positive energy moving around about it." She informed him encouragingly.

He smiled, but waved her goodbye when he heard Kamek announcing him from the stage. He stepped up, straightened his cloak, and began waving to the crowd, who applauded and offered a few cheers.

Ludwig took Kamek's place at the podium and swallowed his nerves. "Hello citizens of Dark Land! I welcome you here today to the first of a series of forums I have decided to hold in order to figure out what the people of my kingdom want and need. I understand that this may come as a surprise to some of you, as my father before me tended to rule this land for himself rather than for his people. I hope to bring about a new era of change, and that change must begin by listening to all of you." He paused as his audience suddenly burst into cheers; he looked on in amazement at what he had created with a few carefully rehearsed words. Curious, he held up a hand to signal for the people to quiet down, which they did in seconds. "Wow." He muttered quietly before continuing. "Now then, I declare the forum open! Please don't hesitate to voice any questions or concerns you may have."

The first tentative hands raised above the crowd and Ludwig chose a rather haggard looking dragon koopa. "Here's a question for you." He said roughly, clearly unafraid of the young king's authority. "How will you be any different from Bowser? You're his son after all, and all you kids were in on his schemes every time one popped into his head." There were murmurs of agreement from the crowd.

Ludwig nodded in understanding, although he felt anxious about the man's hostility and that it was backed by others; he found Aurora's reassuring face in the crowd and continued. "My siblings and I did participate in our father's many failed kidnapping and annexation attempts. However, for most of them we were just uninformed children playing along with his game. Later on we aided him simply because we had to, not because we supported his ideas; we were honestly quite tired of them by the end. But, as to your initial question, although I am Bowser's son, we have always been two very different people. By holding this event today I believe I'm displaying that fact." Seeing that the man appeared content if not completely convinced, he chose another person.

This was a middle aged woman. "Do you have any plans to invade the surrounding kingdoms?"

He shook his head. "No, absolutely not. There is nothing to be gained by doing so. Our kingdom has a wealth of untapped resources that my father consistently ignored. Rather than cause trouble with our neighbors, I would like to set up programs to harness these resources, such as our vast reserves of oil and rich volcanic energy. This will create more jobs for all of you. Also, I know that my father always raised taxes when such invasions took place: wouldn't it be nice to know that you're employed and able to save the money you earn because of lower taxes?" The crowd stirred with relieved agreement and a few claps.

After another hour of answering questions he thanked the crowd for their time and left the stage. The people talked excitedly with one another and there was an aura of happiness over the square. He wiped his forehead, damp despite the cold, and smiled as Aurora approached him.

She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. "You did _great! _They love you!"

Dazed, he grinned down at her. "Oh, good."

"Hey, we should celebrate! We could have a nice dinner, maybe have a few drinks…" She said wryly.

Ludwig nearly agreed, but thought of the work he would have to do the next day and over the next weeks. "I would love to, really, but…well, I have a busy day cut out for me tomorrow and the day after that…and the day after that." He sighed.

Aurora's face fell. "Oh. Well, that's alright. We could just have a nice dinner at the castle with your siblings."

He put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, I want to spend time with you, but I'm just busy right now. There will be a lot of times like this now that I'm king."

"I know." She said, looking at the ground. He took her hand and together they made their way back to the castle.

Over the next few days Ludwig continued to visit the towns nearby and soon his speeches became routine. However, he began noticing more cameras flashing, people scribbling down notes, and signs in the audience: most of them were held by women and sported hearts and praise. Aurora told him that he had "fangirls" and that the people with cameras were likely paparazzi. He told her that the latter wasn't likely, since Bowser had gotten fed up with them and thrown most of the reporters into the dungeon long ago (those he hadn't already burnt to a crisp, anyway).

The first major city Ludwig was to visit was Dark Port, a higher class area despite the amount of crime there. He asked Aurora to come along with him and she agreed; they nestled closely together in the backseat of the armored vehicle that drove them into town once they arrived in the area via warp pipe. Aurora peered out the window in amazement, as she had never seen a city before. Her head tilted up as far as it could as she attempted to glimpse the tops of the buildings. Ludwig watched her with a grin on his face, but one of the brightly lit signs caught his eye.

"Is…Is that _me?" _He asked in astonishment as he pointed out the massive sign. It advertised his appearance at the Shell Dome that night beneath a photograph evidently shot from outside the castle: Through the window of his music room he could be seen sitting at his piano, a small, relaxed smile on his face and a cigarette between his lips.

Aurora's jaw dropped. "Uh, yeah. That's you."

He shook his head slowly. "Why would they do that? They're advertising me like I'm some kind of rock star."

She shrugged, her eyes glued to it as they drove past. "This is the part of your fame where your personal life starts coming out. My guess is that you'll be getting a lot of questions about _you_ tonight."

She had never been so spot on in an assumption. When Ludwig was welcomed to the stage he received a roar of applause and cheers like never before, cameras flashing like stars from all directions within the stadium. Hoards of women and girls crowded the front rows and shrieked shrilly as they called out his name, holding signs with his face on them. Behind him was a giant screen facing the audience, his face splayed across it. Once everyone had finally been reduced to a dull murmur he moved through his opening statement as usual, surprised to find that interviewers had already been chosen for him in the crowd.

A dragon koopa fixed her glasses before speaking into a microphone. "Your Majesty, you seem so mysterious and deep. Could you tell us a bit about that?"

His eyebrows furrowed. "Uh." He uttered, hearing giggles of approval from the girls. "Well…if you're referring to the picture, I suppose music is my way to unwind after a long day. I've always found it to be a relaxing activity. I didn't realize that made me mysterious and deep." Laughter. The next reporter stood up.

"So you enjoy music; do you have an instrument of choice?"

"I play my grand piano most often, but I have also honed my skills at a variety of other instruments as well, namely the violin and guitar." He hurried through his answer, ignoring the sighs of adoration. "However, I would rather talk about what you all want and need for this kingdom and what some of my plans for the future are—,"

"What about your relationship status, eh? For a while it seemed like you were Dark Land's most eligible bachelor, but then this photo was released." A new picture came up on the screen: it was slightly blurred, but it clearly showed Ludwig standing with Aurora after one of the other forums, her arms around his torso as his own hands rested on her shoulders. Shocked at the photo, his eyes darted to the side of the stage, where Aurora met his gaze uncertainly from behind the curtains.

Ludwig tore his eyes away, clearing his throat. "Ah, yes. I am in fact seeing a wonderful lady at the moment." Groans of disapproval from the fangirls. "She's here with me tonight—," Shouts from the audience told him to bring her out over and over again. He faced Aurora again, who shook her head rapidly, but he held out a hand and beckoned her forward, trying his best to look reassuring. After a moment she took her first tentative steps forward into the light of the stage. All cameras turned on her and her image was soon on the screen, the noise of the crowd deafening. She spun around to look at herself, her pupils narrow with anxiety. Finally she reached him, moving slightly behind him as he grasped her hand tightly.

Now the questions were fired at her: "What's your name? How did you meet? Where are you from? Are you a princess?"

Aurora leaned over to the microphone. "M-My name is Aurora. I'm not a princess."

Finally, when questions were asked about "their sex life," Ludwig grabbed the microphone. _"Silence!"_ He roared, the demand having its desired effect. "If none of you care about the future of your kingdom then I don't care to hear from you. We're done for tonight." He hissed, storming offstage with Aurora in tow.

They made it back to the warp pipe, and to the castle, without further incident. Aurora curled up on Ludwig's bed while he raged, pacing back and forth on the newly polished stone.

"I mean, what's the _matter_ with them? I'm holding these damn forums to find out how to improve my kingdom, not to tell everybody what shampoo I use!" He snarled. "Why would they want to know what we do in the bedroom anyway? That's got nothing to do with _anything!"_

She exhaled slowly. "I know it doesn't. People are just overly nosy. You're a nice-looking, intelligent young guy who's in charge of a whole kingdom; everyone wants to know what's up."

He paused. "You think I'm nice-looking and intelligent?"

"I mean, yeah."

He smiled for a moment before returning to his rant. "I just can't believe that they would ask something like that. It's _completely_ inappropriate!" He sighed. "I think I want to call off the forums for a while, at least until I see that people have their priorities straight. I gathered a fair amount of suggestions from the others I held to start up improvements."

She patted the edge of the bed and he sat next to her with her arm around his shoulders. "I think that sounds like a good idea." She said. "Just take a little while to let everybody cool off."

Suddenly Larry burst into the room. "Have you two seen what's on TV?" He gasped.

Ludwig raised an eyebrow tiredly at him. "Do we _want_ to?"

After some badgering from Larry, all three of them relocated to Roy's mess of a bedroom where the other siblings waited, their eyes glued to the screen. Roy cleared some spots on the bed for them to sit, but Ludwig remained standing, his arms crossed.

"Although the new king seems to have good intentions, it's clear that he not only inherited his father's throne but also his infamous temper. Watch this footage taken from the Dark Port forum just hours ago." The newswoman broadcasted from the screen. Ludwig listened, and now watched, himself rage at his audience and storm offstage with Aurora. "We also have some reports of people who have apparently heard of this Aurora character. It seems that she already had a reputation before targeting, and successfully wooing, the most powerful member of the royal family aside from Bowser himself."

The image switched to a young, but weathered, dragon koopa. "Oh yeah, Aurora? She's a gold digger! There's plenty of guys I know who've been tricked outta money by this—," Bleeped out, "—including myself. I don't care how pretty this king talks, if he knows about her past and doesn't toss her in the dungeon, he's a moron!"

"You need to turn the television off before I punch a hole through it." Ludwig ordered, a growl coating his voice. Roy quickly switched it off.

"Well, now we know why Dad hated those guys so much." Iggy offered, although his brother remained unamused.

"That's not even all of it." Larry said, turning to Ludwig. "Before you got here they said the Mushroom Kingdom's gotten wind of what you're doing and now Mario wants to come out and see you."

Ludwig shut his eyes for a moment, breathing slowly to keep himself moderately calm. He noticed Aurora's motionless form hunched over on the bed and put a hand on her back. What he had thought would be an excellent way to connect with his people had now turned into a knotted mess.

He let out a long breath before speaking. "Well, I suppose the best thing to do would be to ignore what goes on in the media, try to avoid the reporters, and focus as much of our energy as possible into what matters. We'll continue work on the budget, renovations, and job planning and if Mario wants to pay us a visit, so be it. I know there are likely cameras waiting for us outside every door and window, so we'll close the blinds and stay hidden in here, at least for a little while; it's winter so we don't want to go outside anyway."

"I mean, snow is fun…" Lemmy whispered before trailing off awkwardly.

Ludwig rolled his eyes, but addressed Aurora as he pulled her to a stand. "I realize that you want to see your family, but I think it would be best if you stayed here for a little while. I'll probably be needing your help anyway."

She nodded somberly, not meeting his eyes. He put his arm around her and left the room, heading back toward his own. They were silent until they were behind closed doors.

"I'm so sorry—," She began.

"Wait." Ludwig held up a finger as he strode across the room and yanked the curtains closed on his window. "I don't think they've figured out which room is mine yet, but just in case."

"I'm sorry." She restarted. "I knew that this would happen eventually. I…I don't know, maybe I should just leave, vanish away somewhere with my family and never come back."

"Absolutely not." He said shortly. "I'll think of something to bring the public's view of you into a better place. You aren't going anywhere."

"But…I just…I don't know if that'll work. I feel like all I'm going to do is ruin people's views of you and make them doubt you. I really think it would be best if I just left, at least for a few months. That way everyone will forget about me and you can do what you need to do."

"No. No, it was hard enough being away from you before, I never want to be away from you like that again."

"Okay, but that was before you were king! It's like you said, things are gonna be different now. Sacrifices will have to be made."

"Well I'm not sacrificing _you!"_ He yelled, stamping his foot.

"Maybe you don't have a choice!" She fired back, standing her ground.

They glared at one another fiercely, each waiting for the other to give in. Ludwig was the first to look away, growling discontentedly. "We're tired. We should sleep on it and not discuss it anymore tonight."

"Fine by me." She hissed back. They readied themselves for bed and got under the covers on opposite sides, facing away from one another. As they each fell into stormy dreams the curtains of the castle's windows were drawn, the doors bolted against the outside world while those inside were encased in the condescending privacy of darkness.


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Note: Hey everybody! I was so excited to read the new reviews I got for the last chapter and I'm glad you are all enjoying this so far! Here's a new chapter...a little intense and bloody, in the spirit of Halloween. ;) Hope you like it and keep giving me your thoughts!**

Ludwig's eyes fluttered open the next morning despite the lack of sunlight flooding his bedroom due to his closed blinds. He sat up, his shoulder sore from sleeping on his side the whole night. As he stretched he found that Aurora's side was vacant aside from wrinkled sheets. Furrowing his eyebrows, he called her name. Not hearing a response he got out of bed to check the bathroom; empty. His concern growing, he decided to head to the banquet hall, where he found a few of his siblings eating breakfast.

"Have any of you seen Aurora this morning?" He asked as calmly as possible.

Wendy looked up from her eggs. "I thought she stayed with you last night."

"She did…" He choked out. "P-Perhaps she got up and went home. I told her not to, but we were upset at each other and it seems like her to do the opposite of what somebody says when she's mad at them so I'll be going out for a just a little while but nobody else leaves this castle, you hear?" He stuttered out rapidly as he left the room.

After he had readied himself to leave, he grabbed the cloak Aurora had made for him, chose the most discreet exit, and headed in the direction of her family's cottage. Although it was only a mile away, the walk felt like years. He knocked on the door shakily and was greeted by Ambrosia.

"What a pleasant surprise! Good morning, Your Majesty!" She said in the uncharacteristically cheerful tone she usually spoke to him with.

"Yes, good morning to you as well." Ludwig muttered, playing nervously with the edge of his cloak. "Is Aurora here?"

She raised an eyebrow. "I thought she stayed at the castle last night after the fiasco in Dark Port."

He shut his eyes to block out the memory. "Right. She did. Well, then, I'll be on my way. Good day to you all." He said, turning to leave.

"Is everything alright?" She asked after him.

He turned back to her with a fake smile plastered on his muzzle. "Oh, yes. Just wondered if you'd heard the news." As he rushed back down the road he grew so anxious that he decided to teleport back into the castle. Once inside (he had ended up in the music room) his mind began to race, thinking of all possible places she could have gone. His memory shot him back to the day beneath the shade tree, of her face twisted in a cunning smile as she made off with his small treasure: had her acting skill exceeded anything he had ever experienced before, allowing her to pull off the greatest heist in history? He rushed through the castle, checking all of the locations where precious treasures were hidden. Everything was still intact, untouched.

Just then he walked past Roy's bedroom. Even though the room was unoccupied, the television continued to announce the news. Ludwig moved to enter the room and switch it off before a new story caused him to stop in his tracks.

"—receiving a live broadcast from the hangar as we speak. Here it is." The news anchor's voice cut out, the image flashing to the same roughened man who had spoken about Aurora the day before.

"Hey there, Your Ultimate Stupidness." He growled, a smirk on his face. "We spotted your little lady on a walk earlier today and thought we'd bring her in for a nice chat." He backed away from the camera, revealing Aurora on her knees behind another dragon koopa who held a fistful of her hair in his claws; her hands were tied. "You see, a lot of us guys that've run into her before got together to figure out what to do about it. Seeing her on the TV led us right to her, so thanks for your help!" He laughed evilly. "Anyway, we've decided that it'd be nice to get back that money we lost. Plus interest. So, if you fork over a million gold coins we'll give her back. If not, well…" He walked to Aurora and grabbed her muzzle, his claws drawing blood on her cheek, "I suppose we'll just have to take care of her." Aurora's golden eyes flickered desperately to the camera before the broadcast cut out.

Ludwig had left before she had silently called out for help. He rushed to the throne room to retrieve his long golden scepter, the gemstone tip glinting with magic at his touch. As he rounded the corner of the doorway he nearly collided with Larry.

"Did you see the news?" He exclaimed. "Some gang captured Aurora! She's in some kind of warehouse—,"

"It's the old airship hangar! The one where Dad used to store the Doomship when we were kids!" Iggy's shrill report cut across his brother's as he skidded to a halt next to him, nearly losing his glasses in the process.

"I know." Ludwig growled. "I'm on my way there right now."

_"What?_ You can't do that, man, they'll kill you and Aurora too!" Larry croaked.

"I can handle myself. I'm not just going to leave her there with those filthy pigs." He pushed past his younger brothers, who continued to call out after him.

Some reporters saw the king leave and hustled over to him, but he teleported with a snarl before they could get close. He reappeared outside of the abandoned airship hangar, feeling the fatigue of his second warp in one day setting in. However, he shook it off and approached the small, rusted door on the side of the building; he rammed himself into it, busting it off its hinges. He soon found the gang of dragon koopas in the center of the massive space.

"Whoa! He got here quick!" The one in charge laughed, stepping forward. "Hey, you don't remember me, do you? Name's Judd: I'm the guy you attacked in the alleyway last year." He sneered. "How special that I got to brawl with royalty."

Ludwig set his fiery gaze on Judd, whose scales were warped by burns from Aurora's fire. "Give her to me."

Another koopa thug stepped out of the darkness, his massive form rippling with muscles, and tossed Aurora onto the dusty ground. She exhaled sharply as she landed, turning to face Ludwig as a thin stream of blood trickled from her nose. With a snarl he came forward, but was shocked to feel other hands grabbing his arms and holding him back.

"Cool your jets, Kingy." Judd chuckled. "God, I was right! You _are_ stupid, coming here all by yourself. Did you really think we weren't ready for you?" He stepped forward quickly and tied Ludwig's jaws closed before any fire could be released. "I guess you were thinking you'd come in here, snatch her away, and be off, right? Clearly, 'cause you didn't bring our money. Oh, well…" He walked back toward Aurora, flashing a switchblade in his hand, "I suppose you'll just have to watch."

Ludwig struggled to move, unable to free himself. He watched as Judd pulled Aurora back up to her knees by her hair, bringing his face close to hers and breathing in her scent.

"Mm. I think all of us here know why we were so easily fooled by you. You use every bit of yourself as a ploy." He ran his hands over her body, eliciting a muffled snarl from Ludwig. "It'd be a shame if something were to happen to your pretty little face." He wrapped an arm around her neck and reached up to her forehead; there he sunk in his claws and drug them slowly down over her eye and across her cheek, causing her to scream in pain while he laughed.

Ludwig screwed his eyes shut, summoning every ounce of power he had left in his body. He tensed harder and harder until, finally, he vanished from his captors' arms. He reappeared in a fraction of a second, knocking Judd to the ground while grabbing Aurora in his arms. He tore the rope from his muzzle and used his scepter to cut Aurora free. She stood shakily next to him, blood dripping down her face.

"Get outside, _now!"_ He yelled, sliding into a crouch.

"No!" She growled, finding the forms of her captors in the dim light and unleashing her fire onto them. Knowing there was no time to force her outside, Ludwig also blew fire all around him. Small patches of flame now crackled on the floor, a few of the koopas rushing from the building in flames. Still, more converged on them and together they attempted to fend them off. Ludwig was tackled to the ground by the largest koopa of the bunch, seeing stars as he received a heavy blow to the head. Scarcely back to his senses, he found flesh and clamped his jaws hard around it. A roar sounded from above him and the weight was lifted from him. Turning over, he found his rival clutching at his arm and took his chance to land a forceful kick into his opponent's gut before scrambling back to a stand. He saw Aurora get knocked to the ground and let out a snarl as he charged forward and head-butted the smaller koopa in the midsection, knocking the wind out of him.

"Are you—," Ludwig attempted to ask Aurora before feeling a sharp, stinging pain in his shoulder. A deep cut had been slashed open by Judd, who crouched nearby. Ludwig let out a hostile growl and lashed out with his scepter, catching Judd across the chest. As he came forward to strike again, the burly koopa who had tackled him moments ago pulled Ludwig's arms behind his back. Meanwhile Judd strutted forward with a laugh and delivered several punches to the king's torso, knocking the wind out of him. He held his knife to Ludwig's throat, preparing to slice open his jugular, when, with a snarl, Aurora leaped onto the giant koopa's back and sunk her fangs into his neck, the fire in her throat superheating her jaws. With a roar he released Ludwig, reached back, grabbed Aurora, and threw her violently across the room where she hit the floor, skidding through the dust. Seeing her lying motionless, Ludwig let out an earsplitting roar, his rage channeling through to his scepter, which became electrified, flashing. Whipping around, he stabbed the tip of it into the large koopa's chest, the charge knocking him out. Completing the circle, he jabbed it into Judd as well, causing the koopa to convulse wildly before falling to the ground.

As the echoes vanished and the dust settled, Ludwig allowed himself to slump forward, gasping for breath and trembling from exhaustion. He looked back at Aurora and limped slowly toward her, collapsing next to her.

"Hey. _Aurora."_ He rasped, lightly shaking her shoulder. "Come on, _please."_

With a small, shaky groan she opened her eyes. "I'm here."

He sighed heavily with relief.

A tear leaked from her eye. "I was on my way…to Mom's house to…to tell her that we should leave. So that…you could be a good king…and everyone would see…"

He shushed her, stroking her hair lightly. "I know. I know."

Suddenly a retching cough was heard from across the room; Judd was pushing himself up from the ground, his dark eyes locked on Ludwig. "You bastard. We were just trying to get rid of a _pest._ You're a damn idiot if you wanna keep the bitch!" He snarled.

Aurora shut her eyes against his cruel words.

Ludwig kissed her cheek. "Everything will be fine." He pushed himself to a stand, his scepter clattering to the ground. Judd threw vulgarities at him across the empty space as the king limped slowly closer. He stopped for a moment when he noticed Ludwig's hand glowing a brilliant blue, electric sparks snapping and sizzling as they leaped from his fingertips. Judd then began to plead, attempting to back away, his claws clattering against the stony floor. After a crash of thunder, silence fell abruptly from the shadows.

The king reemerged from the dimness quietly. His heart beat loudly in his ears, blocking out all other sound. He took up Aurora in his arms, his mind in a fog, and carried her toward the rectangle of light that represented the outside world. Unsure if he reached it or not, he felt himself slide into darkness.


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's Note: Hey everybody! This chapter's going to take us down from the intensity of 17 a little bit. Hope you're all liking it and sorry for the massive gaps between chapters! I have school essays out the wazzoo! **

An outside force prodded at Ludwig's mind, forcing him out of his fitful dreams and into a plain, quiet space. For the first time in a while he felt fully aware of himself and his surroundings. He looked around and, with a jolt, he noticed Aurora standing nearby.

"Aurora!" He called out joyfully before feeling concerned. "Oh no, are we dead?"

She laughed lightly. "No. I'm just intruding in your mind again. I woke up before you did and I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Woke up? Am I in a _coma?"_

"No, you're just sleeping. Kamek said that you'd depleted nearly all of your magical energy, so your body just shut down. That combined with all the stress you were under just kind of made you stay unconscious for longer than usual. Your body knew it needed rest and sort of jumped on the opportunity." She smiled.

"Oh. I suppose that makes sense." He replied. "What about you, though? Are you alright?"

She shrugged. "You could say that." The space around them suddenly began to shudder and darken. "I think you're starting to wake up! See you on the other side." She waved before vanishing. Momentarily frightened, Ludwig felt himself fading, sucked toward the darkness until, finally, his eyes opened.

The room was blurred for a few seconds as his eyes adjusted. Soon enough he was able to make out the forms of his siblings and Kamek standing around him.

"Welcome back, Lud." Larry smiled.

With a groan, Ludwig pushed himself up to lean against the headboard of what he now realized was his own bed. Every muscle ached sorely, even worse than after his last fight with Mario, and he almost wished to be unconscious again. Even breathing was painful.

"Everything hurts." He muttered, his siblings laughing quietly.

"Well, that's what you get for trying to take on such dangerous things by yourself!" Kamek scolded him. "You have two broken ribs, a few hundred stitches on your shoulder, and you suffered a severe concussion! Not to mention all the other scrapes and bruises I had to deal with." The old wizard shook his head. "Just like your father; thinking your invincible even when there's no Starmen in sight."

Ludwig rolled his eyes. "I suppose. But, where's Aurora? She was just in my mind a minute ago."

His siblings looked at one another uncertainly, but Aurora's voice rang out from behind them. "Just let me through. I don't look that bad." They parted and she stepped forward. Ludwig's heart dropped. Her left arm was wrapped and in a sling, evidently broken, but the real shock came as his eyes moved upward; long, jagged scars marred the right side of her face from her forehead down to the apple of her cheek, her eyelid drooping to hide half of the brilliant golden iris.

Aurora laughed humorlessly. "Hm. Maybe I spoke too soon; look how freaked out he is."

Ludwig shook his head. "No, no that's not it at all! I just…I can't believe someone did that to you while I was standing right in front of them." He reached out a hand to her, his joints cracking, and she moved over to him. She sat on the edge of the bed and he embraced her as tightly as he could while still being gentle. His siblings 'awwed' at them, to which Ludwig shot them a glare that quickly communicated that they should leave. Soon they were alone in their quiet moment.

"You probably think I'm hideous now." She mumbled, her head tucked into the curve of his neck.

"I would never think anything of the sort." He said softly, moving over to allow her more space next to him. They were quiet again.

She sat up and looked him in the eye. "Listen, the only reason I left was because I was mad at you. That and I really believed that you'd be better off without me around. I was gonna go to Mom's house and tell everyone it was time to pack up and go so that we'd be out of the way. I never meant for that crazy thing to happen…"

"I know that. But you also have to understand that I'm not willing to let you go. No matter what it takes I'll make everyone see what I see. And what I see is the kindest, most _beautiful_ person I've ever had the pleasure of having in my life." He said tenderly, brushing a lock of hair away from her face.

Her head moved slowly back and forth, a smile on her lips. "I would do you so hard right now if we weren't broken."

His jaw dropped momentarily. "Oh, um, you would?"

She giggled. "Totally! But, seriously…I thought what you did for me was really brave." She held his hand. "To be honest, for a while I wasn't completely sure if you were the person I wanted to be with. Even after Christmas I still thought of you more as a best friend rather than as a boyfriend. But back at that hangar, when I saw you coming out of the shadows with that look in your eyes…right then I knew that I wanted you, too."

He felt his heart fluttering excitedly in his chest. "No one's ever said anything like that to me before."

"Maybe they don't see what I see." She used his words with a wry smile on her face, leaning forward to kiss him. For a few moments he forgot about the pain.

Under a week had passed before Ludwig insisted he get back to work, despite Kamek's almost constant badgering. By using green mushroom jelly Ludwig was able to heal the gash in his shoulder enough to take the stitches out early; by leaving it on Aurora's scarring overnight her wounds became a bit less noticeable even though it was too late to fully heal them.

Today as he walked gingerly through the castle—for his ribs were still healing and marked with garish bruising on his torso—a servant rushed up to him. Mario was making his way through the paparazzi to the castle.

"Wonderful." Ludwig sighed. He had hoped to avoid a meeting with his nemesis while he was weakened. Even so, he told the servant to lead the Real World native to the throne room, where he would be waiting.

As Ludwig sat atop the throne, his claws clicked at the polished stone impatiently; he had planned on spending some time discussing renovations with Wendy and having lunch with Aurora. The double doors began to slowly open, breaking his thoughts. He straightened up, wincing slightly, in the hope that he would appear more imposing as the graying, albeit powerful, Mario entered the room.

"My God, those reporters are swarming like mayflies out there." The man commented serenely, almost amicably, as he approached the stairs. Receiving no response, he shook his head. "Real World reference."

Ludwig grunted disinterestedly, channeling his trademark arrogance. "Why have you come here today? I'm a busy man and your timing is _most_ inconvenient."

Mario laughed lightly, clasping his hands together in front of himself. "My condolences. However, your family has never exactly _cared_ about convenience in the past, so I figured the concept didn't matter to you." His deep blue eyes bore into the king's skull threateningly. "Am I incorrect in my assumption, _Ludwig?"_

Although put off by Mario's hostility, Ludwig slowly stood from his throne and began walking down the steps. "No, what you have said is not _entirely_ incorrect. However," He stood in front of the red-clad man, towering nearly a foot over him, "You are in my territory and I am the king, so you _will_ address me as such."

Mario's eyes narrowed. "Understood." He paused. "Would it be acceptable to ask what in the Sam Hell happened to you?" He tossed up a hand at the king's battered form.

He broke eye contact. "There was a dangerous situation that I had to deal with recently."

Mario laughed once. "I'll say! Did the situation involve an ass-whooping? Because that's certainly what it looks like."

Ludwig glared at the man, saying nothing.

Mario crossed his arms. "Well, I didn't come all the way out here to learn about your personal life anyway. I came to see you for myself: the leading cog in Bowser's machine who not even two months ago helped enslave the princess and who now wears the crown, preaching peace. Well, let me tell you something." He jabbed a finger at Ludwig. "I don't buy it and I'm _through_ being the nice guy. Your godforsaken kingdom owes us a hefty amount for damage repairs and an even heftier apology for your years of harassment, yet we've seen _nothing."_

Ludwig gave a lukewarm smile. "The time frame you just gave; less than two months, was it? Do you truly believe that I, despite being exceptionally intelligent, could sort out the mess of problems I inherited from my father _and_ start an apology campaign to the surrounding kingdoms in that time? And you are also aware that my father, Bowser, is _dead_, correct?"

Mario lowered his head slightly.

Ludwig continued, relishing every moment as he gained the upper hand. "Yes, he died a week before Christmas after clinging to life in a coma due to the injuries he sustained in battle. I had to revive him with my own hands once in order for him to last _that_ long. We experienced our first Christmas and New Year's without not only a father, but a leader. So, _no_, I'm not quite prepared to deal with your problem just yet." He finished deliberately.

The hero let out a long sigh. "Alright. Fine. I get your point." He met the king's eyes again. "Even so, you'd better add us to your list of debts. If you are who you say you are, then maybe someday we can come to trust your kingdom. But that certainly won't be happening any time soon."

Ludwig nodded once. "I understand your caution. However, it will likely be a long time before our debts to you are paid. Before I can tend to my neighbors I have to tend to my own."

They were interrupted when Aurora sprang into the doorway and threw a handful of snapping pebbles to the ground. "Cherry bombs!" The playful smile on her face vanished with a jolt when she noticed the visitor. "O-Oh. Sorry."

Ludwig shook his head with a sigh. "Where did you find _those?"_

"Lemmy gave them to me." She murmured, her head lowered.

Mario raised an eyebrow at Ludwig, who gestured for her to come in. "This is Aurora."

"Oh. Well, were you both in the so-called 'dangerous situation'? Or is everybody just beat up around here?" The plumber asked.

Aurora turned her nose up at him. "He saved my life from a gang of thugs, for your information. So don't be making fun of him because I'll bet you've never had to do anything like that in your _life."_ She huffed.

After a moment of painfully awkward silence, Ludwig spoke up. "Aurora, I don't believe you've met Mario before."

Realizing who she was speaking to, her eyes widened and her face paled with horror at her mistake. "Mario. Right." She squeaked.

To Ludwig's surprise, Mario smiled at her. "That's alright, sweetheart. I shouldn't be making light of a scary situation."

She offered a small smile in return. "Sorry. Uh, before I make this whole thing even more awkward I'm just gonna go…" She backed away, pointing over her shoulder at the door, until finally she vanished around the corner.

Mario chuckled lightly. "So she's your girlfriend." Ludwig nodded silently, still looking toward the door after her. "Hey, whatever, I remember being a kid in love. That's, a…shame about the scars though."

The king's gaze lowered slightly. "Unfortunately I couldn't save her from that."

The hero wore a curious expression on his face. "Strange, talking to you now like this. You're more complex than what I've always known you to be; you know, when you were this big." He held a hand down by his waist.

Ludwig smirked, looking over at him. "Are you getting sentimental? Nostalgic, perhaps?"

"No…my optimism is just starting to hope for a nicer future between us." He clapped his hands together. "Well, I'll be going then. But, just remember," He pointed two fingers at his eyes and then at Ludwig, "I'll be keeping my eye on you. So don't start anything fishy."

"I'm not planning on it." He called after his old nemesis as he walked out the door. Moments later Aurora poked her head around the corner again, a frightened expression on her face. Ludwig smiled, beckoning for her to come in.

She shuffled her feet apologetically in front of him. "I'm so sorry about that, I probably just screwed up the whole meeting."

Ludwig laughed. "No, darling, you may have actually made it turn out better than it would have otherwise." He assured her, kissing her forehead.

She half-smiled up at him. "Whatever you say. But, there was another reason I wanted to talk to you."

"What is it?"

"I think I have an idea to make the public like me a little more."


	19. Chapter 19

**Author's Note: Hey peeps! Here's a cute sort of chapter for you all. I hope you like it and tell me what you think. :)**

"Are you ready?" Ludwig asked, listening to the rumble of voices just outside the doors.

Aurora took a deep breath. "I'm still nervous about what they're going to say."

He took her hand. "We both still look worse for wear right now. Just let it roll off your scales like rain."

She squeezed his hand tightly and nodded. The doors swung open and the camera flashes hit them like strobe lights. Reporters called their names on either side of them, leaning precariously over the guard rails put in place to hold them back. People began to gasp and question their wounds once they got a good look at Dark Land's most talked about couple. It was Ludwig and Aurora's first public appearance since the hangar incident and everyone wanted to know just what happened to them.

"I don't like the way they're looking at me." Aurora whispered nervously to Ludwig, who wrapped his arm protectively around her. Thankfully they reached the warp pipe they needed seconds later, hopping into it and out of sight. They reappeared to yet another swarm of cameras and microphones, nearly overtaken before they slipped into a side door on the building they needed.

A hospital.

One of the nurses approached them, her pink hair tied up in a bun. "Thank you again for choosing to come here today, Your Majesty. And you as well, Lady Aurora." She bowed to them.

Aurora stretched out her lip at the title. _"Lady Aurora._ Huh."

Ludwig smiled. "This nurse will take you where you need to go. I'll stay down here and hold everyone off; I'll be watching the live stream, too, just in case."

She nodded and followed the nurse, glancing back at him once before rounding a corner. He watched after her before groaning with displeasure at the reporters pressed against the windows. Moments later he saw Aurora appear on a nearby television screen and stopped to watch.

She cleared her throat, interlacing her fingers in front of herself nervously. "H-Hello. As most of you watching already know, my name is Aurora. I, uh, I decided to do this today because…well, because a lot of you think that I'm a bad person based on what all those guys said. I'm not here to say I never did any of the things they said I did, because I really did con people out of money. But that's all in the past. I only stole from people because I needed to help my family survive. I…I think a lot of us have had to do things we regretted later, but that we knew were necessary when we did them.

"As for Lud—er, the King—and I…we first met last year. He didn't tell me who he was for a while, so I never knew that he had money. And…oh, heck, I'll just tell the whole truth: I knew that he was some sort of nobility so I snagged a few coins off of him, too. But, later on he saved me from a bad situation and…he forgave me. He was willing to push aside what I had done to him and move on, make a new friendship. No one had ever shown me such kindness before. I think that that's what made me want to become a better person. Because, honestly…in a way, I wanted to be like him."

Ludwig's heart melted at her words. He didn't care if he had an idiotic smile on his face for the paparazzi to take pictures of; he only wanted to listen to the rest of her speech.

"So, anyway, that's why I'm here today. I have a special ability that I want to share with the world in order to undo some of the wrongs I've committed in the past." The camera followed her as she moved to the side, stopping next to an elderly, sleeping dragon koopa in a bed and an equally aged woman standing next to him. The woman whispered to her, asking if it would work, to which Aurora nodded with a small smile. She reached forward and placed her left hand on the koopa's wrinkled forehead, her eyes glowing white. The woman took her hand, her eyes turning completely white as well. Ludwig heard stunned gasps from behind him and noticed that the reporters were as totally absorbed in the television as he was. Several minutes passed before, finally, Aurora's and the woman's forms relaxed as they came out of the world of the mind. The woman placed a hand over her mouth as she stepped away, tears spilling out of her eyes. Cameramen asked her what had happened.

"My husband; he spoke to me through _her!"_ She exclaimed, pointing to Aurora shakily. "He gave me his final wishes!"

Aurora beamed at the camera for a moment before realizing that her grin could be deemed inappropriate. "I know you're all wondering how I did that." She held up her hand, displaying her tattoo. "I was given a gift when I was born: the magic needed to read minds. I discovered that I could not only enter people's minds who were unconscious, but also transfer those thoughts through myself and into others. By doing this I was able to give the late King Bowser's final words to all of his children. Now I hope to share this with anyone whose loved ones are unable to communicate as they begin to pass away. Thank you for letting me share this with you all." The images from the hospital room ceased, replaced by news anchors already raving about the footage.

Ludwig watched for Aurora to come back down the hallway, rushing to her and taking her in his arms when she appeared. "You did wonderfully! I'm so proud of you!" He praised her, grinning widely.

"Thanks." She lilted, her eyes locked on the wall.

He held her shoulders, concerned. "Hey, are you feeling alright? Aurora?"

Her features were pale and her balance shifted from side to side. "I think…I should sit down…" She mustered. He quickly asked a nurse if there were any empty rooms; she nodded and led them back down the hallway, thoughtfully drawing the blinds in the vacant room to block any prying eyes. He sat Aurora on the bed and she fell back against the pillows.

"Can you tell me what's going on?" He asked her softly.

She swallowed, staring at the ceiling. "I'm dizzy." She pointed to the tiles above her head. "They won't stop moving."

"Why don't you shut your eyes?"

She obeyed him, her head swaying back and forth on the pillow. He reached out and put his hands on either side of her face to stop her. She groaned. "I can feel myself moving."

He cocked his head to the side, trying to figure out what was happening. "Do you…feel faint at all? Like you're about to pass out?"

"I dunno I'm all tingly. Be quiet I'm tired." At her demand he silenced himself. Soon her breathing deepened and slowed, her mouth hanging slightly open. He removed his hands and called for the nurse while Aurora snored softly.

The nurse, named Gem, gave him a report a few minutes later. "What I've gathered is that she simply exerted herself too much. I know that she had been harmed in a stressful situation recently." She eyed Ludwig's wounds. "So she just wasn't ready for that kind of strain. Before she can start doing things like this again she has to be completely recuperated. She'll be fine, though; it was only a little fainting spell."

He nodded. "Alright. Well, thank you very much for all of your assistance today. Would it be possible for me to take her home?"

Gem pursed her lips. "I suppose so. You're the King, so you can do whatever you like."

After they returned to the castle, Ludwig placed Aurora in his bed and pulled the sheets over her unconscious form. He sat on the window seat with his acoustic guitar and played a few tunes while he waited for her to wake up. Strumming away, his thoughts took him back to the moment he first saw her, the times that they had walked through town together with laughter in their voices, their first kiss.

Hearing a small murmur from her, he stopped momentarily. She pushed herself up and turned her head to him dazedly. "Was that you?"

He smiled, a breathy laugh escaping involuntarily. "I assume you mean the guitar playing."

She nodded slightly. "Yeah, and who got me back here. I remember you giving me a hug but that's it."

"Well, I'll get you all caught up tomorrow after you've rested up." He walked to the bed and sat next to her, strumming the guitar again.

She yawned, leaning against him. "Can you sing?"

He shrugged. "I suppose I'm alright at it." He thought for a moment before starting a tune. _"There were bells, on a hill, but I never heard them ringing. No, I never heard them at all. 'Til there was you."_ Aurora grinned, her eyes closed, as Ludwig sang softly next to her. After the final notes had faded away and he was confident that she was asleep, he set the guitar next to the bed and moved to turn off the lights.

"Is that how you feel about me?" She asked suddenly. "You know, like the lyrics in the song?"

Ludwig moved back to his former position, staring at the wrinkled blankets. "I…yes." She remained silent, which he took as a prompt to continue explaining. "I never imagined that one day I would be singing love songs to a beautiful woman while she leaned against me in bed. I thought that the entire concept was a waste of time. But then I heard you playing violin and just like that," He snapped his fingers, "My perspective was completely changed."

There was a weighty pause. "Do you love me?"

He felt the color rise in his face, nerves firing. He swallowed hard. "D-do you love _me?"_

She sat up and his eyes flickered to his hands, balled into fists in his lap. He felt her eyes on him intently, her fingers pressing on his jaw and forcing his gaze upward.

"Look at me." She demanded when his eyes continued to flicker. They held each other's gaze for several motionless moments. "What do you think the answer is?" Aurora smiled and kissed his cheek before laying back down. Ludwig sat for a moment, letting the intensity of the moment fade from his mind, and turned out the light.

He nestled next to her and kissed her shoulder. "Well, just to restate the obvious, I love you."

She giggled quietly. "You're adorable."

They fell into dreams beneath the dim light of the stars.


	20. Chapter 20

**Author's Note: Hello everybody! Sorry this one took a while (I feel like I apologize for that a lot)! But, here you go; sort of a lighthearted one. Hope you like it and review!**

Winter melted into spring, one of the mildest and brightest that Dark Land had ever experienced. Flowers sprung up in places they hadn't before, wounds healed, and work on the castle moved along smoothly and quickly due to the favorable weather. Now constructed of brick and granite with dark blue shingles, the once grizzled fortress now rivaled the Real World Neuschwanstein in elegance.

Meanwhile, oil wells had been built and pumped away, barely putting a dent in the vast reserves beneath the kingdom's soil. That soil, enriched by volcanic ash, was spread over Dark Land's sterile dirt; because of this the mountains and hills would someday become lush with forests. Other neighboring kingdoms, although hesitant, could not resist offering trade options to the new king.

Ludwig himself had been travelling to said kingdoms to meet with other leaders and assure them that he was not the destructive tyrant that his father before him had been. Aurora had stayed behind, as she was aiding several people in nearby towns with their dying loved ones. Ludwig had begun teaching her how to read and write, but since he would be gone for at least a month he asked Kamek to continue lessons for her and her siblings. Although the old wizard had groused about it, Ludwig knew that he would enjoy working with young children again.

For weeks the young king had been feeling odd ridges on the front skull, tender to the touch. At first he thought they were knots left over from some forgotten time that he had banged his head, but they were too perfectly spaced and symmetrical. Now, as he was escorted to the Mushroom Kingdom castle, he spotted the sharp, white tips of horns protruding from his navy hair. He admired his reflection excitedly, thinking that he would look all the more powerful once they came in fully. His driver announced that they had arrived, snapping him out of his reverie.

Ludwig approached the high red doors, awaiting an escort. Finally one door cracked open and Toad's disproportionate head appeared.

His black eyes narrowed. "Oh. It's you."

Ludwig sneered down at the tiny creature. "Don't act so enthused, your little heart might give out."

Toad grumbled under his breath, gesturing stiffly for the king to follow him. Ludwig looked up at the soaring cathedral ceilings and the sparkling walls of cream, pink, and gold stone, down at the plush red carpet, and around him at the elegant statues and columns. He had always found the castle beautiful albeit too frilly for his taste.

In the throne room Princess Peach waited patiently for him, her gloved hands folded in front of her lacy pink dress. Although aging, she still had a youthfulness about her eyes and physique. She thanked Toad for escorting her guest and the mushroom servant moved to leave, deliberately trying to step on Ludwig's tail as he walked by; in response the king delivered a discreet snap to the mushroom's bulbous head.

Ludwig bowed politely as the doors closed. "Princess Toadstool." He greeted her using her formal name.

Peach curtsied delicately. "King Koopa."

He offered a small smile. "I don't believe it necessary for you to use such a formal address for me. You held me in your lap while you read stories to the lot of us when we were young."

Her cold politeness thawed and she smiled back at him. "This is true. I'll just call you by your first name then. You may do the same for me if you wish."

Just then the doors opened loudly again, Luigi tripping into the room. "Oh good, you haven't made off with her yet!" He exaggerated wiping sweat from his brow.

Ludwig rolled his eyes at the less imposing member of the heroic duo. "My father was the only member of my family with an infatuation and a kidnapping fetish. You mustn't associate an entire family by the undesirable habits of its former patriarch."

Luigi's eyes widened and he whistled quietly. "Right. Wouldn't want to do _that."_ He walked past the king to Peach, kissing her hand. "Mario sent me to watch after you. He's having some quality time with Star and Angelo."

Peach grinned. "Oh, wonderful! I worry sometimes that they don't get to see him often enough."

Ludwig cleared his throat. "Do…you and Mario have children together?"

She nodded. "Indeed we do. They're only five and three. And they're such little darlings!" She beamed affectionately.

"I see my siblings and I didn't break you for wanting children of your own." He replied jokingly.

Peach laughed while Luigi looked on in confusion. "I don't get it." He said. "You're being so pleasant."

Ludwig turned his snout up at the plumber. "Yes, while father was cavorting around on his schemes I turned to music for culture and refinement, crafting the mannered king you see before you."

Luigi adjusted his hat. "Well, I didn't understand much of that, but I take back my compliment because what you said felt snotty."

"That's enough." Peach said sternly. "I say we cut through the small-talk and move on to more pressing matters. Otherwise we'll keep getting distracted."

Ludwig nodded. "Of course. I know that you likely have quite a few questions for me."

She stepped forward, her light blue gaze studying him. "Well, I know Mario already voiced his concerns to you. What I want to know is what you're planning to do in order to gain our trust."

"We could start by establishing a few trade options: I know oil would be useful to your kingdom since racing is so popular and my people would enjoy more luxurious materials for clothes and furniture making." He replied.

She made an interested noise. "And what of your debts to us?"

He grinned. "I brought an offering along with me today." A koopa servant entered the throne room, hauling a sizeable bag jingling with coins. "My kingdom has begun generating a fair amount of revenue, so I decided to begin paying my debts to you. This here is half a million coins, although I'm certain I owe far more than that."

Luigi's eyebrows shot up and Peach gazed at the bag in amazement as it practically spilled over on the floor. She lost her usual grace for a moment. "I…I, uh, yes, this will do for now."

Luigi crossed his arms, his lower lip sticking out. "Yeah. I think I could warm up to this kid."

Suddenly high-pitched laughter rang out in the hallways and two small children tumbled into view, racing forward before they spotted Ludwig and skidded to a halt, silent.

"I'll get you crazy kids!" Mario called playfully; he too stopped when he found them. "Oh. Looks like I'm paying you back the interruption." He addressed Ludwig.

"Daddy…who is that?" The girl (presumably Star) had wide blue eyes beneath her light brown hair and younger brother cowered slightly behind her.

Ludwig turned to them fully and tried to appear less imposing. "Hello, children. My name is Ludwig; I'm the new king of Dark Land."

Angelo peeked out from behind his sister. "Dark Land bad!"

"Yeah, you're the ones who take Mommy!" Star fired back bravely.

Ludwig took no offense, knowing that it was all the children knew, and knelt down. "No, not anymore. My…" He hesitated, "Daddy, he was the one who did those bad things. He's gone now, so everything will be just fine."

Star and Angelo exchanged a suspicious glance, but decided to come closer to the kneeling king. Star reached out tentatively and ran her tiny hand over his shoulder, "wowing" at the foreign smoothness of his scales. Ludwig held still as they observed him, glancing up at Mario; the hero wore a puzzled expression on his face, shaking it off as he called his children away.

Ludwig stood and cleared his throat. "Well then, my business here is done, unless you need anything else from me."

The princess nodded. "Yes, you should be on your way. Thank you for your offering. I wish you a safe journey."

Ludwig bowed once again and made to leave, but Mario called out to him. "Hey, uh…you, you don't have any kids, do you?"

Ludwig laughed. "Lord, no! Someday, perhaps. Although, Aurora has very young siblings."

"Hm." Mario grunted, shoving his hands in his pockets awkwardly. "I just, you know, wondered. Because, you know, these two like making friends and…stuff."

The king smiled with understanding and bid them a final farewell, eager to finally get home to Aurora; he couldn't help but wonder what his future children would look like.


End file.
